Now in its 34th year, the Palm Coast Holiday Boat Parade is scheduled for Dec. 16 at at 6 p.m., departing from the Cimmaron Basin. The parade will be escorted by boats from the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, Tow Boat U.S., the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, and the Palm Coast Auxiliary of the U.S. Coast Guard. Mayor Milissa Holland will serve as Grand Marshall.
Last year’s Parade set a record with more than 33 boats participating and throngs of revelers hugging the shores of the Intracoastal Waterway with parties, music, and fireworks.
Boat captains are invited to contact Parade Captain Robert Ulis at 386-283-5166 or at [email protected] for registration forms. Registration forms are also available here or below. Boats must be decorated and registered to participate. There are no entry fees.
Rain date is set for December 17. Official notice of the Parade status and any rain date will be posted on the Palm Coast Yacht Club website on December 16 by 4 p.m.
Registered boats will gather on Cimmaron Basin at 6 p.m. and head east to the Intracoastal Waterway where the Parade turns south passing Tidelands, Canopy Walk, St. Joe Walkway, Waterfront Park, and Island Estates before turning at the Grand Haven Gazebo back to Clubhouse Waterway.
Boat captains participating in the event are required to attend a special parade meeting outlining safety regulations and procedures. The meeting will be held at Marina Cove in Palm Coast at 10 a.m. on December 16. Attending will be officials of the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, Tow Boat U.S., the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, and the Palm Coast Auxiliary of the U.S. Coast Guard, all of whom will be escorting the Parade.
The Palm Coast Yacht Club inaugurated this Palm Coast tradition in 1983 and has been in at the helm of the Parade every year since. The Club offers a wide variety of social activities for boaters and non-boaters alike, welcoming new members every month. The Club was established in 1979 # #
Download the 2017 Parade Registration Form
Click to access 2017BoatParadeRegistrationform2.pdf
palmcoastpioneers says
The Palm Coaster, Volume 7, Number 2 Summer 1978, p. 1 , 5, and 7.
On our Cover…
Composite photo of fireworks and ‘ Parade of Short Ships ‘ in main canal during Spring Festival.
Palm Coast Spring Festival p.5
The first annual Palm Coast Spring Festival became a reality when the first event of the action and fun filled week began on Monday, May the 15th. Six brand new tennis courts were officially opened for play, and two bright young tennis professionals, Tom and Tim Gullikson, twin brothers, provided the fans plenty of excitement when they played each other in an exhibition match.
Meanwhile, over at the golf course, a hole-in-one tournament was taking place . Later in the week the golf course sponsored a driving contest and on Friday there was a scramble tournament with about two hundred golfers taking part.
Following the Gulliksons’ match, a week long tennis tournament began for local tennis buffs.
The Park-like setting behind the Welcome Cer was turned into an art and fashion center with artists displaying their work, while fashion models showed off the newest in ladies fashions.
In between fashion shows various musical groups performed with music ranging from jazz to matching bands.
Indoor sports were much in evidence at the Yacht Club where bridge, backgammon and chess tournaments were taking place throughout the week.
Outside the Yacht Club the largest events took place on Saturday. The Italian-American Festa took over part of the grounds with numerous booths of Italian food and games. The Yacht Club swimming pool was the scene of hundreds of youngsters taking part in a swim meet. At the same time skateboard championships were being conducted on the Yacht Club bridge.
The first two events on Saturday were four mile foot race starting and finishing at the Yacht Club and the Great Palm Coast Bicycle Race which started at the Yacht Club bridge and ran for six miles.
Saturday afternoon the first Palm Coast International Bathtub boat Race was held with racers coming from as far away as British Columbia. The tub races employ boats which use the mold of a bathtub as a pilot house with some type of stabilization built around it.
Following the races, awards for the week were presented by Alan Smolen, president of ICDC.
Saturday night a performance was presented to an audience of approximately 3,000 by Archie Campbell, star of the television series ‘ Hee Haw” Accompanying him was R. W. Blackwood and the Blackwood Rhythm Band.
Closing out the week with a bang was accomplished with thirty minute firework extravaganza.
Next year’s festival is already in the planning stages, and it promised to be a bigger and better event than this year’s. Dates for the event will be announced in the next issue.
palmcoaster says
Thank you Pioneer for the memories …of how nice it used to be.
Resident says
Great plan.