Big Fourth of July celebrations are on tap for Steamboat Springs and Yampa as the holiday weekend approaches.

In Steamboat, the Fourth of July events will be centered around downtown Steamboat and the base of the ski resort. The annual Cowboy Roundup Days’ Parade starts at 10 a.m. Friday between Sixth and 10th Streets on Lincoln Avenue. 

The Cowboy Roundup Days celebration will also be featured in the Steamboat Pro Rodeo Series at Brent Romick Arena, with a special show Thursday and shows on Friday and Saturday as well, all starting at 7:30 p.m. 

Fourth of July festivities in Steamboat will kick off early Friday with the traditional Lions Club Pancake Breakfast at 7 a.m. in Little Toots Park. Sausages, eggs, french toast and pancakes provided by Steamboat Ski Town Lions Club will be available to purchase from 7-10 a.m. before the parade. Proceeds will support community needs such as eye care, local scholarships, Junior Achievement and LiftUp of Routt County. 

The Nordic Combined 1K Run down Lincoln Avenue will begin at 9:15 a.m. followed by the 3K Roller Ski Race at 9:30 a.m. Top Nordic skiers from across the country are expected to compete. 

This year’s Fourth of July Parade, themed “Salute to Dog Town USA,” will feature over 40 vibrant floats featuring local businesses and organizations, honoring the tangible impacts that canines have on the local community. Grand marshals Elaine Hicks, executive director of Routt County Humane Society, and Kathy Connell, president of Steamboat Digs Dogs, will be celebrated for their leadership roles in animal welfare. 

With the parade returning to Lincoln Avenue this year, there are a few important traffic changes. U.S. Highway 40 eastbound traffic will be directed onto Yampa Street with westbound traffic onto Oak Street. Parking is available at Howelsen Hill, Howelsen Ice Complex, the Rodeo Arena, Stockbridge Transit Center and Steamboat Springs High School — the city recommends walking, biking or taking the free bus as parking will fill up quickly. 

After the parade, the Veterans Center is set to host a free community lunch. There will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 1 p.m. to honor the grand opening of the new Veterans Center facility in the newly renovated historic building at 924 Lincoln Ave. that was formerly VFW. 

Also following the parade, at around 11 a.m., holiday momentum continues as ski jumpers leap from the side of Howelsen Hill in the Jumpin’ and Jammin’ Ski Jumping Extravaganza. Spectators are encouraged to watch this high-speed, elimination event on the grass until 2:30 p.m.

Just 30 minutes later, the base of Mt. Werner will resonate with the funk and disco beats of DJ Jus. The resort’s free concert opener will feature his signature mix of ’80s, ’90s and 2000s hits.

Banshee Tree, an indie rock and jazz hybrid band, will follow at 5:30 p.m. At 7 p.m., MarchFourth will perform their brass and genre bending sound accompanied by stilt walkers, acrobats, dancers and funky costumes. They’ve been described as “part rock concert, part street carnival,” according to the Steamboat Resort website. 

The entertainment at the ski area base continues with a 15-minute drone show at 9 p.m. The night at Steamboat Resort closes how it began with DJ Jus hosting an after-party set to go until 10:30 p.m. 

Yampa set to celebrate

The town of Yampa’s Independence Day activities will start Thursday evening and continue Friday. There will be a community picnic from 5-7 p.m. Thursday at Yackey Park to raise money for the Yampa Egeria Historical Society. A classic barbecue meal will be served alongside live music. 

Just across the street from the picnic and running at the same time, Yampa will host a Rockin’ Oldies Classic Car show. An award for best classic car will be presented. 

On the Fourth, the Soroco Girls Basketball pancake breakfast will run 7-10 a.m. at Ladies Aid Hall. 

Yampa’s parade theme is “Rockin’ to the ’50s — Small Town, Big Tradition” with grand marshals Bruce and Connie Sigler. The parade starts at 1 p.m. There is no official sign-up — anyone who wants to participate is asked to line up at River Park before noon.  

Post-parade festivities include games for kids at the school grounds, including a bounce house and a fish tank where they can grab and catch the fish. At Yackey Park, there will be an array of options for food. The town of Yampa will be selling their traditional chili and regular hot dogs to help cover the celebration expenses and there will also be local food trucks like Ann’s Authentic Thai, Chow Haul, Yampa Garage Biscuits and BBQ, Montgomery’s and Sinclair. 

Yampa’s horse polo and horse race tradition starts at 4 p.m. Horse polo is first, where many of Yampa’s longtime local ranchers ride their horses and use broomsticks to guide a soccer ball. The horse race will follow — there will be a traveling trophy prize for polo and first- and second-place trophy awards for the race.

The night closes at around 9 p.m. with Yampa’s fireworks show. “We are definitely a go (for the fireworks show),” said Sonja Clyncke, one of the event managers. 

Although Steamboat Springs will not have a fireworks show due to fire danger, Steamboat Lake will host its fireworks show on Saturday, July 5 once it gets dark around 9 or 9:30 p.m. Also on Saturday, Pearl Lake State Park will offer live music from 2-6 p.m.