July 4th in the Valley


Woodacre, CA

Wanting to get out of the city, we headed north for an old school 4th.

My roommates and I were eager to get out of the city. Not having an plans of our own, we tagged along some our friends plans last minute and it far exceeded any of our expectations.

First stop was the Woodacre Fire Department for food and festivities. You give a small donation to get a huge pancake breakfast, plus a chance to play with fire trucks. They let us ride around the town in one.[^1]

[^1]: It might have been only for children. Our group were the only ones over 10 yrs old.

--- ## The Parade

Next up was the Woodacre Annual Parade. Our host, John, explained people are allowed to make their own floats and his family has participated for years. Town folk would set up their seats ahead of time and then go get breakfast. It all seemed very casual and fun.

Best in Show

There definitely was some unique "floats".

Lunch and Leisure

To my surprise, John's family generously invited us back to their cabin in the hills for lunch. We hung out for a bit and got to know everyone before heading to a camp ground a quick swim.

--- ## The Induction Ceremony I heard rumors throughout the day that there's an "Induction" for any new Forth of July guests. It made me a little nervous when I saw some GroPros mounted around the deck.

Right before dinner it was our time, and it was a lot of fun. I'm not going to give the surprise away just in case you're fortunate hang out with this wonderful family.