Good Afternoon Moon Subhead Bosque County residents, visitors pause for total solar eclipse
News Staff Wed, 04/10/2024 - 07:14 Image
The Lanza Family chased the total solar eclipse outside the Armory in Clifton City Park from California, Nevada by way of Granbury, Texas, where one of their members is currently based on Monday, April 8, 2024 Nathan Diebenow | The Clifton Record 
Market at the Mill in Clifton was active with live music, food trucks, and vendors all weekend prior to the 2024 solar eclipse on Monday, April 8. Nathan Diebenow | The Clifton Record 
Singer/songwriter Keegan McInroe based in Fort Worth and Dublin, Texas, broke in the stage at the On5th Gallery’s new outdoor concert space in historic downtown Clifton on Friday and Saturday prior to the total solar eclipse on Monday, April 8. Nathan Diebenow | The Clifton Record 
High school friends Michael of Seattle, Washington, and Jimmy of Austin, Texas, (from left) landed in Clifton City Park after chasing clear skies for the total solar eclipse on Monday, April 8. Nathan Diebenow | The Clifton Record 
A family brought their own pickle ball net to play with at the Clifton City Park while waiting for the total solar eclipse on Monday, April 8. Nathan Diebenow | The Clifton Record 
Employees of Lady Bugs look at the total solar eclipse outside the retail shop in historic downtown Clifton on Monday, April 8. The City of Clifton closed the west side of the 100 block of North Avenue D to vehiclar traffic and parking to not only prevent recreational vehicles and tour buses from parking overnight through the weekend but also give the local businesses opportunity to utilize the outdoor space for themselves and pedestrian foot traffic. Nathan Diebenow | The Clifton Record 
Friends and fellow solar eclipse chasers Kelly of San Francisco, California, Jill of Santa Cruz, California, and Stan and Rosa of Anchorage, Alaska, (from left) discovered Clifton during their research of possible viewing areas for the 2024 solar eclipse on Monday, April 8. Nathan Diebenow | The Clifton Record
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While the huge crowds and traffic gridlock failed to occur as expected, the total solar eclipse still stopped people in Bosque County in their tracks on Monday, April 8.
The cloud cover parted revealing the Moon sitting directly in front of the Sun in the darkened sky for several minutes that early afternoon.
As the sky darkened and streetlights turned on, folks gasped and exclaimed at the awesome sight outside overhead.
Birds, bats, and dogs showed signs of confusion during the natural blackout. Chickens also reportedly went back into their coops as the temperature dropped.
Hours prior, a few hundred visitors from across the world descended into the public parks in Meridian and Clifton to witness the celestial spectacle.
At Clifton City Park, the 20 members of the Lanza family held a family reunion as they set up cameras with which to capture the sight.
Inspired by two brothers who caught an eclipse in Oregon in 2017, the family decided to travel to Clifton from Granbury for the experience of two more minutes under the Moon’s shadow on Earth (aka totality).
“My brothers said that you have to see it. It’s like a bucket list thing,” David Lanza of Nevada said. “So we started planning last summer to come out and do it.”
David said most of his clan lived in California, but his sister lived in Granbury, Texas.
“The rangers were saying that they thought between 10,000-50,000 people were coming to Clifton, but it doesn’t look like that,” he said.
Friends Michael of Seattle, Washington, and Jimmy of Austin, Texas, set up equipment to capture images of the eclipse in the park.
The two high school friends from San Diego, California, chose to view the eclipse from Clifton after exhausting reviews of weather forecasts that ruled out their first choice – Lampasas, Texas.
“We’re just nerds,” Michael said, adding the duo left Austin at 6 a.m. searching for clear skies while avoiding traffic.
Michael said he watched the 2017 eclipse in totality in Gallatin, Tennessee, and this experience for the 2024 eclipse in Texas was much lower key.
“We got to the city park before sunrise, and they closed the parking lot by 7:30 a.m. or 8 a.m. because it was full,” he said, speaking of his experience in Tennessee.
Also different from his experience was that the cellphone and Internet service remained online locally for the duration of the 2024 eclipse.
To pass the time prior to the eclipse, families, friends, and couples played pickle ball and basketball and ate lunch together in the park.
The Clifton Police Department estimated that around 115 people watched the eclipse in city park.
Tour groups also came from outside of the country; a contingent from Japan reportedly stayed one night at the Velkommen Inn in Clifton and watched the eclipse at the Valley Mills Vineyard just outside Valley Mills.
While also not an over-whelming crowd, Meridian City Park in Meridian was alive with eclipse watchers scattered around the area.
“We were met with nothing but kindness and gratitude for making our beautiful town and parks available for this once in a life-time experience,” Meridian Parks & Recreation President Jennifer Lumpkins said. “Thank you to all of the Meridian Parks & Recreation board members and volunteers that had the vision and fortitude to develop such a magnificent place for all to enjoy.”
Lumpkins said the turnout at the inaugural Texas Twilight Jubilee was good on Saturday morning and early afternoon.
The Jubilee featured musical acts from the immediate county region, with Chad Miller and The Good Fortune band of the Texas Panhandle headlining Sunday evening.
The festivities the weekend prior to the eclipse did not go as expected as anticipated guests failed to materialize in Meridian and Clifton.
It seemed like mostly locals ventured out to listen to live music at the Market at the Mill and the On5th Gallery in Clifton.
The Bosque Museum reported having five visitors attend its eclipse viewing event on Monday, though Executive Director Erin Shields said she was happy with this type of turnout for a weekday.
For the most part, Bosque County residents heeded the suggestion to “stay home” by the Bosque County Office of Emergency Management.
At the same time, the City of Clifton accommodated a few businesses on the 100 block North Avenue D by re-opening one side of the block to vehicular parking for half the weekend so the businesses could receive and entertain their regular guests better.
The City had closed the entire 100 block to prevent RV campers from parking overnight through the weekend in historic downtown Clifton.
On the other side of the block, Corner Drug Café kept its tents up outside to provide food and beverages to guests throughout the weekend, as it had planned.
The café reportedly experienced good sales on Sunday morning with guests eating meals in outdoor patio seating outside their front door.
Visitors from the West Coast came to Bosque County after experiencing total eclipses in other parts of the globe in the past.
Rosa and her husband Stan ofAnchorage, Alaska, and their friends Kelly from San Francisco, California, and Jill from Santa Cruz, California, intended to catch an eclipse in Chile but missed it due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
They decided to detour to Clifton since the forecast over Waco called for cloudier skies.
“It was serendipity that we saw the eclipse parking here,” Rosa said. “Everybody has been so friendly and fun to talk to.”
Kelly added, “It’s really beautiful here in Clifton. The people are great.”
The eclipse coincided with special events that attracted former Bosque County residents like Diane, a Clifton ISD alumni now living in North Carolina.
“We came here for a service for our great uncle,” she said. “He’s up there now, but he’s having a great time, so he’ll probably see the eclipse first.”
Friends Anya and Elana brought their kids Robert and Liza from Houston for an overnight stay on Sunday to watch the eclipse on Monday in Clifton.
The friends said by accident, they piggybacked on their other mutual friend’s reservation at a local bed and breakfast in Clifton with another larger group.
“We really liked it here. It’s so nice,” Elana said. “We should probably come every year.”
Anya added, “We didn’t know about this place. We happened to be here just because of the eclipse, but we are planning to come back here.”
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