Mounds State Park attracts visitors from across US for eclipse

Ken de la Bastide, The Herald Bulletin, Anderson, Ind.
·3 min read

Apr. 8—ANDERSON — People from across the United States gathered at Mounds State Park to witness Monday's total eclipse of the sun.

Vehicle traffic into the park was cut off about 12:30 p.m. after the available 400 parking spaces were taken. Dozens of motorists were allowed to park along the road and walk into the park.

The large gathering was mostly silent until the total eclipse took place as the temperature dropped and the sky went dark. Then the air was filled with cheering and applause.

Many expressed amazement at the celestial event.

Allison Taylor of Leesburg, Virginia, traveled with her family on a road trip and selected the area because they'd never been to Indiana. They arrived at Mounds about 6 a.m.

"We thought Indianapolis would be a great spot along the path," she said. "We did some research on the different parks that were available and my cousin mentioned this. I saw a partial eclipse in the past."

Lindsay Tolver of Wabash had planned for the past month and a half to come to Anderson for the eclipse.

"We got here about 9 a.m., which was the perfect time," she said. 'I've never seen anything like this; I didn't know what to expect."

Pat McCarthy from Grand Rapids arrived Sunday in Anderson.

"I booked a hotel room in January," he explained. "We came here because it was easy to get to. It took a while to develop plans, and I was looking around the Indianapolis area,"

Bryan Keable came from the Chicago area after selecting Mounds State Park because it was in the path of the total eclipse. He said last year they were preparing to go to see the eclipse, then learned it was a year away.

"We were 30 minutes away from a location and heard on the radio the eclipse was next year," he said. "It was a good thing I heard it on the radio."

Keable drove in from Michigan on Sunday and spent the night in Anderson. He was preparing to drive home Monday.

John Vornese from Washington D.C. looked at several sites but came to Indiana because of the weather forecast for the Anderson area.

"We didn't decide where to watch the eclipse until this (Monday) morning and liked the idea of a state park," he said.

Lora Bridges from Evanston decided about a year ago to come to Anderson.

"I think I knew everywhere would be crowded and would rather be somewhere other than Indianapolis," she said. "I was looking at the path and found a hotel in Anderson and there was a state park."

Donna Goad is from New Mexico. Her son who lives in Ohio researched where to watch the eclipse. They originally planned to go to Texas, but the weather forecast made them decide to fly to Ohio and drive to Indiana.

Kelley Morgan with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources said the plan was to allow vehicles into the park only until all of the parking spaces were occupied.

"We were planning for a large crowd. We were a little surprised we didn't fill up faster," she said. "The campground has been full for several months."

Follow Ken de la Bastide on Twitter @KendelaBastide, or call 765-640-4863.