Crowds flock to Hilton Head St. Patrick’s Day Parade

There was no shortage of crowd-pleasers at the 33rd annual Hilton Head Island St. Patrick’s Day Parade.

But one of the biggest hits, while several shades of green, had little to do with the holiday.

The giant camouflage truck that spouted bubbles and fog, blared hard rock and towed a Statue of Liberty was a tribute to veterans, and one of the first floats to get peoples’ hands in the air, their smartphones and cameras held high to capture the show.

Over the next few hours, spectators were hard pressed to put their hands down, as dozens of Snapchat- and Instagram-worthy cars, trucks and floats made their ways down Pope Avenue from the Coligny Beach traffic circle to Office Park Road.

The massive parade, which draws thousands of people to the south end of the island each year, has a distinctly Lowcountry flavor — from the candy-filled John Deere tractor to Sir Willie winking from the top of an RBC Heritage float.

And many of the cars that carried local and state officials down the parade route would have looked right at home at the island’s annual Motoring Festival and Concours d’Elegance.

“I got the good car,” parade grand marshal Betsy Doughtie, the executive director of Hilton Head’s Deep Well Project, said from the back of a 1929 Packard, before the event began. “I just hope the weather holds.”

Doughtie got her wish. A few floats down the line, a local weatherman predicted clear skies for the rest of the afternoon.

“You heard it straight from the source,” boomed emcee Mike Taylor of 104.9 The Surf.

Sunday’s spectacle also included plenty of traditional Irish notes, from dance companies to pipe and drum bands. In the crowds, people wore the words “Kiss me, I’m Irish” on everything from pageant sashes to furry green hats and argued playfully about their heritage.

“(My mother-in-law) is a Flanagan, which is a wee bit Irish,” said Jason Holliday of Hilton Head, as he and his wife relaxed alongside Pope Avenue before the parade, saving spots for their family and friends.

Holliday himself — more Scots than Scots Irish, he admits. But that didn’t stop him from donning a Green Lantern cape and turning his radio to Pandora’s St. Patrick’s Day station. His son, J.J., kept with the super-hero theme and wore a Hulk T-shirt.

To snag their spot outside St. Luke’s Church, Holliday put their group’s chairs out before church at 9 a.m.

“It’s just a good time on Hilton Head,” he said.

Plenty of people arrived early like the Hollidays, but one of the best seats on Pope Avenue went to someone who arrived late, after the parade had just started. Garrett Tweedy of Hilton Head had hung a hammock between two branches just off Cordillo Parkway and was comfortably swinging with his 7-week-old daughter Frances while others sat on the pine straw and gravel.

“It’s just a lot of practice being lazy,” Tweedy said with a smile.

Or it might have been a bit of St. Patrick’s Day luck. While Tweedy didn’t wear anything special for the occasion — and hadn’t expected such a large affair — Frances had him covered with a striped green shirt with a small shamrock pocket.

“She has a bigger wardrobe than me,” Tweedy said, rocking his hammock as the parade marched on.

This story was originally published March 13, 2016 at 5:30 PM with the headline "Crowds flock to Hilton Head St. Patrick’s Day Parade."