BIGFORK — America’s independence will be on full display Friday on Electric Avenue in Bigfork as the 4th of July parade rolls through town.
Come Friday at noon, downtown Bigfork will be packed with spectators for the annual 4th of July Parade that starts at the fire hall, goes through town and finishes over the new Bridge Street Bridge.
Check out what's on tap in Bigfork for the 4th of July:
“This new bridge actually eliminates really any of those previous capacity or height restrictions that we had with the old bridge,” said Bigfork Chamber of Commerce Board member Aaron Whitten.
Whitten said the old bridge that was torn down had a 3-ton weight limit, limiting fire trucks and large vehicles from crossing over.
The new Bridge Street Bridge does not have any restrictions and offers a safe connection to downtown Bigfork.
“And so we will be able to maintain a safe flow of traffic in one direction, all floats and participants will be able to exit town through the new Bridge Street Bridge.”
A total of 70 floats are expected to participate in the parade on Friday, with thousands of people in attendance.
“It’s a tremendous turnout for downtown Bigfork, and really we believe a great boon for the businesses down here,” said Whitten.
Jack Saunders owns Electric Buffalo Gallery in downtown Bigfork, promoting various Montana artists and hand-crafted jewelry.
“Any time that we have a big influx of people, it does wonderous things for our business here,” said Saunders.
His gallery is normally open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., but he will be opening shop early on the 4th.
“Tomorrow I’m going to probably be down here at 7 a.m. in the morning, and I’ll have the doors open around 8 a.m. in the morning so that people milling around can come in the store, look around, shop around as they are waiting for the parade to start.”
Saunders does have a tip for anyone coming to the Bigfork parade.
“Really advantageous to get here early so that you can park and get down here because there will be 5,000 to 10,000 people down here.”
No cars will be allowed in downtown Bigfork after 8 a.m. on July 4th.
Parking for the parade will be in the field at the intersection of Highway 35 and 82. From this parking area only, free shuttle service is available to downtown from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m.
More information on parade parking and free shuttle service can be found here.
