Happy holiday crowds have a blast

This year's July 4 celebration in La Conner was a double feature times two.

Several entries in the town's Independence Day parade looped downtown a second time. That evening, tribal vendors led by Rodney John filled the sky with fireworks for hours following the official pyrotechnics show over Swinomish Channel.

Both the parade and fireworks received positive reviews as did the two-band holiday evening concert at The Port of Skagit's La Conner Marina.

Social media was filled Thursday night and into Friday with colorful Fourth of July images of the local sky, which some referred to as "fireworks on steroids."

Others said they "had never seen anything like it" and that the fireworks displays here were "spectacular," "incredible" and "amazing" plus "by far the longest ever seen."

The show started long before dark. The crowd, gathering at Gilkey Square and up and down the boardwalk from 8 p.m. on first heard blasts of noise filled the sky, then toward dusk fireworks blossomed. Colorful arcs of lights from Snee Oosh Beach could be seen on the western horizon. Those were more than matched by Swinomish crews along the channel and in the village.

With no wind, black and gray smoke floated over the channel at least to Second Street, a fog like haze.

Promptly at 10 p.m. Western Family Fireworks, which also puts on shows at Seattle's Space Needle, started the town's 20-minute display. John and fellow Swinomish vendors outshone them and continued on.

The crowds on both sides of the channel yelled for more. After one long, sustained volley of light and noise around 10:30 p.m. applause and shouts of thank you came from folks on the boardwalk.

Most in Gilkey Square and along the boardwalk stayed a while as the Swinomish fireworks lit up the night sky. The several batteries along the channel, on Front Street and streets west of Pioneer Parkway each blasted many times more pyrotechnics past midnight. Less than a handful of people remained on the boardwalk to witness.

A different light show, monochromely red, were taillights as vehicles slowly inched their way to the roundabout to get out of town. By 11 p.m. the line, while still stretching to Second Street, was moving at a steady clip.

Earlier in the day, parade participants – including those steering a veritable fleet of vintage cars, trucks and tractors – made their way past crowds that lined both sides of First Street from Morris to Commercial.

"The parade was really well attended. There were so many people," said Mayor Marna Hanneman, who rode in a 1965 Shelby Cobra convertible owned by former Mount Vernon city council member Dale Reagan, a car collector of note.

"He said he did have the Cobra available and asked if that would be okay," Hanneman said. "I told him that would definitely work."

Town Administrator Scott Thomas, who helped at the parade staging area Thursday morning, agreed that the number of spectators – many of whom (and their pets) were decked out in patriotic red, white and blue – exceeded that of prior July 4 processions.

"There might've been fewer entries in the parade than in past years," said Thomas, who drove his Mazda Miata sports car, "but it seemed like there were a lot more people lining the street. And the weather was exquisite. I can't remember a better Fourth of July here weather-wise."

The popular Meow Mix mobile, with its sound system blaring golden oldies, joined emergency vehicles and a few other entrants in making a second round of First Street.

"Old guys like me can't remember that they'd been by before," joked resident Tom Zimmerman, who staked out a spot in front of the post office.

Kids on First Street had no trouble tracking parade entries, of course – especially those that tossed candy. They were helped in that regard beforehand by downtown business owners Mike Bucy and Mari White-Bucy, who distributed free candy buckets.

Brad Bradford, of La Conner, who navigated the parade route pedaling his stylish three-wheeler adorned with red and blue balloons, felt the holiday vibe throughout.

"It was quite a party," he said.

Of course, individuals, families and organizations paraded. The latter, with banners, included the La Conner Swinomish Library, the La Conner Rotary Club, the La Conner Soroptimists, the La Conner Sunrise Food Bank, That's Knot All. La Conner Artists Gallery – who have a Cooperative Spirit – and Shelter Bay advocates for lighting the south side of Rainbow Bridge.

About the only thing missing was an appearance by the Swinomish Sloughmander. The popular amphibian's alter ego, former town council candidate Glen Johnson, said he fears an overzealous sloughmander fan pilfered the costume's head from a clothesline a while back.

So, Johnson, a music aficionado, planned to attend the marina concert as himself. Taking the stage was Pacific Twang, a country group from Mount Vernon known for its smooth three-part harmony and The Power Players, who treat fans to the big brass sounds of Chicago and Blood, Sweat & Tears.

"The concert at the port was well attended," Thomas said. "The bands were really good. And you don't always see a band that plays a lot of the old Chicago tunes."

Nor see the same parade twice and fireworks overhead seemingly for hours on end.