One week till Seafair U.S. Navy fleet parades past West Seattle

The biggest events of Seafair are getting closer – with the Torchlight Parade (including the West Seattle Hi-Yu float) downtown this Saturday, and the Blue Angels and hydroplane races coming up the first weekend in August. And an event that can be viewed from West Seattle shores is a week away – the Seafair Parade of Ships and Flight. The parade is scheduled for 1:45 pm next Wednesday (August 1st), which means that you’ll see it from here in the early afternoon. Here’s our coverage from last year, when we recorded video from a perch along Duwamish Head. This year, your editor here will get a different perspective – from the media ride-aboard, spending that morning on the guided-missile cruiser USS Bunker Hill (CG-52). The Seafair website says other ships coming in for the festival include the amphibious dock landing ship USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52), which will later dock at Pier 90, and guided-missile destroyer USS Halsey (DDG 97), which will dock at Pier 66 (the Bunker Hill will be at Pier 48). The ships will offer free tours Thursday-Sunday, August 2nd-5th (hours and details are here).

10 Replies to "One week till Seafair U.S. Navy fleet parades past West Seattle"

  • sam-c July 26, 2012 (8:21 am)

    For a first-time torchlight parade viewer, what time do people start setting up their chairs and stuff on the sidewalk of the parade route?

    and: WSB: have fun on the ride aboard- sounds great!

    • WSB July 26, 2012 (8:42 am)

      Sam-C – VERY VERY VERY early. I mean like first thing Saturday morning early. I have spent years on the Torchlight Parade route and if you can’t start staking out that early, you might be able to find something on the southern half of the route (like near the central library and beyond) if you get down around early afternoon. I used to have an entire routine worked out of sitting there with a book (and after we started this, with the laptop) and guarding my spot – though there are some who cheat (in my view! you may disagree!) and just put out chairs with no minders and come back later. I could go on. I won’t. Just know that if you show up oh say around 3 pm or later, you might just wind up standing somewhere three rows back from the street. – TR

  • Gina July 26, 2012 (9:34 am)

    Empty chairs were spotted in front of the Central library before 8:30 am last year.

  • Lura Ercolano July 26, 2012 (12:38 pm)

    Or you can purchase a reserved bleacher seat. I just checked, and while the $20 seats are mostly sold out, there is still a selection of $30 bleacher seats near the start of the parade route.

  • Cheryl July 26, 2012 (1:59 pm)

    Can’t wait!

  • sam-c July 27, 2012 (9:13 am)

    thanks for the help! sitting on the sidewalk all day long may not be the ideal thing for my mother in law, who is flying in real late tonight (don’t think she would want to stand for the whole parade either) so it may be me on the sidewalk all day… or … we’ll just watch on tv so i can spend time with her during the day. thanks for the recommendation on the bleacher seats- I will have to be more pro-active next year to get the $20 ones!

  • sam-c July 28, 2012 (8:39 pm)

    (judging from the photo of a sidewalk full of couches that Seafair posted on their Facebook page, ‘cheating’ is pretty common. enjoyed watching on tv last year though, cause Angela Russell’s attempt to interview Tom Skerritt was pretty hilarious. .. he was not very cooperative. must have been an empty flask rolling around in the convertible or something…)

  • Leslie July 30, 2012 (9:52 am)

    ^^^ What do you mean cheating is pretty common?? O.o

  • kelly July 31, 2012 (4:07 pm)

    Does the water taxi run on the day of the fleet arrival

    • WSB July 31, 2012 (4:24 pm)

      Yes – the fleet actually arrived today, and will be parading tomorrow, and the Water Taxi schedule is not interrupted … TR

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