Solar eclipse: Thousands gather at Lake Buchanan for celestial event

LAKE BUCHANAN, Texas - The path of the solar eclipse went directly over Lake Buchanan. LCRA’s Black Rock Park made for a beautiful front row seat. 

The moon, shortly after 12:15 p.m. on Monday, started moving across the sun as scheduled. It was the moment and reason so many came to this part of the Central Texas Hill Country.

"Man, that was amazing. The clouds parted, everything that I imagined was perfect," said Chris Burket from Delaware.

A time-lapse video showed how the moon crossed in front of the sun.

"It was absolutely worth the trip down. Just amazing. We had a break in the sky that was perfectly timed," said Janet Tubito, who was visiting from Colorado.

As the total solar eclipse happened, day became night. Darkness fell over the fields of bluebonnets that wrapped around the lake. And, a solar flare appeared from the bottom of the moon as the corona fought through passing clouds.

"Last time I was doing an eclipse I was at ACL fest, which my shirt says, and I saw the eclipse, and it did not go like that," said eclipse veteran Katie Thomas.

Black Rock Park was one of nine LCRA properties in the path of the total eclipse that attracted an estimated 2,000 visitors. Many arrived early, and spent the past few days taking part in events as they waited for the big day.

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Some came from far away states, and others came for different countries. For many, it was their first trip to Texas, and each one represented a potential lifelong friendship.

"We are out on the stage today, showing them our best foot forward, and really hoping that they enjoy themselves on this trip and will plan another," said Margo Richards, with LCRA Parks.

Just before 3 p.m., the moon started to move away, and darkness gave way to the light from the sun.

"We came here all of us three days ago for the eclipse. Were you sweating it out there for a while? Oh, we were worried about the clouds. Yeah absolutely," said Ken Aird, who came down from Utah with several other family members.

There was one thing missing from the event because of the cloud clover. Typically, a large shadow on the ground can be seen with the arrival of a total eclipse. That was not apparent on Monday at Lake Buchanan.