Opening Day boat parade a windy sail

It did not rain on the Swinomish Yacht Club’s boat parade Saturday afternoon.

But it sure was windy.

Fortunately, the dozen or so vessels comprising the opening day flotilla on Swinomish Channel were ready for a wild and woolly ride.

The event’s theme, “Jungle Cruise,” showed on several levels. Entries sported décor reflecting the popular 2021 Disney retro action-adventure film of the same name.

The handfuls of spectators on both sides of the channel braved chilly gusts to view various sized craft with props depicting safari wildlife. Crowd favorites included one pet dog donning leopard prints and another wearing a costumed lion’s mane.

Judges awarded top prize honors to Tyler and Ronda Clawson’s “Njoy Mor,” which featured braided rope used as fenders and “cargo” one would expect to see transported on the Amazon.

Second place went to “Tuggin Fun,” entered by Matt and Michelle Olsen. Daniel and Rebecca Irish placed third in the “Knot Irish.”

“It was a fun theme,” one parade judge, who asked not to be identified, said afterward. “And the docking went okay despite the wind.

“It was a really festive atmosphere,” she added, “and even though we had the wind, it didn’t rain. They went up just past the bridge and came back,”giving onlookers a second glimpse, having started at the La Conner Marina’s south basin.

Nor did the parade fall prey to COVID-19 as was the case two years ago when pandemic protocols forced cancellation of the yacht club’s opening day activities.

Swinomish Yacht Club, a fixture in La Conner for more than 80 years, also hosts a lighted Christmas boat parade in December.

Up the channel, the Shelter Bay Yacht Club held their traditional opening day ceremonies, including firing of their minerature cannon, but members did not join the parade.