Los Gatos Holiday Parade

Cub Scout Pack 556 has participated in the LG Holiday Parade for ages. The parade is always held on the first Saturday of December, rain or shine. The parade begins at 11:00am and lasts until ~1:15pm. Roads are closed from early morning until afternoon.

Our pack watches the bulk of the parade together and then walks in the parade near the end (our entry is typically second to last in the lineup).

What do the scouts do in the parade?

• All scouts should be in full Class A uniform.

• Tigers lead our group by carrying the Pack 556 banners on long PVC pipe poles. They can practice marching at the parade preparation meeting before the parade.

• Wolves ride the float pulled by a car. If there are too many wolves to fit, some will walk and take turns switching halfway through.

• Bears ride and push go-karts. Every couple of minutes, the Cubmaster will yell “switch!” and the rider hops out and pushes and the pusher hops in and rides.

• Webelos I & II scouts walk next to Santa Claus’ sleigh, which is the final parade entry. Webelos II scouts may be asked to scoop horse poop from the parade entry in front of our group.

• Scouts are welcome to wear Santa hats or come up with their own holiday-themed decorations for the float/go-karts. All this needs to be done at the parade preparation meeting prior to parade day.

Logistics for the day:

• Parade equipment is brought over to the staging area by~7:30am. Roads are closed to traffic shortly after.

• Scouts and their families sit in chairs and on the curb in front of Oak & Rye to watch the bulk of the parade.  A set of parents are asked to volunteer to reserve loads of curb space early that morning.

• Scouts head to the staging area at ~12:00pm. The staging area is located at Almendra near Tait Ave. Pack 556 is typically 2nd to last in the parade lineup.

• Parents may walk on the sides of the parade (please don’t walk in among the scouts! Let them have their glory without you hovering) or meet them at the finish location.

• Pick up your scouts at the finish: Church St. at Main St. Do not attempt to drive to that location –roads will be closed until ~2pm.

• Parade Map is located on the Los Gatos Saratoga Recreation Community page: http://www.lgsrecreation.org.