The Tumwater Independence Day Parade is an annual event that takes place on July 4th, this year is their 30th anniversary. The parade theme this year was a festive Christmas in July, we saw various floats, marching bands, and community groups decorated with Christmas gear.

The parade starts at W. Lee Street and proceeded along Linderson Way SW. The event started at 11 am.

We set up near Dairy Queen and were lucky enough to find shade. It was our first year seeing this parade and we loved it. We highly recommend getting there early for a good seat. We sat on a picnic blanket but others had chairs. The problem was it was difficult to move around people who had set up their chairs early. It somewhat forced those with strollers or wagons to walk in the road even though it had not been closed yet. One way this might be avoided is set up your chairs and have a picnic blanket in front of you so that you create room for those who need to come through but your space is reserved.

The Tumwater Independence Day Parade featured floats decorated in combinations of tinsel and Fourth of July garb. Bands wore anything from Christmas pajamas, reindeer ears, or specifically designed shirts. My favorite shirt was the one with the Candy Cane… see if you can spot it. Floats were either traditionally designed or had a unique spin such as the backyard BBQ where they had a small pool that kids could splash around in, or the Santa using a small truck as its reindeer on a flatbed.

Community members were present from the military to the Scouts of America, the Fire District, and the Police. There were several car clubs, schools, and cheer teams.

I was very excited to see my favorite event represented in the Tumwater Independence Day Parade…Olympia Harbor Days! Three mini tugs represented the 3-day free event on Labor Day weekend. These min-tugs were decked out with tinsel and other fun Christmas goodies. Bubbles were also a huge part of this display, but the best part was Ariel on the back of the last tug.

 

 

See more Olympia Harbor Days photos on my portfolio here and you can check out that awesome event here.

You can check out the winners of the parade categories here.