LAKE PLACID — Lake Placid’s Main Street was packed with people on Sunday for the annual Fourth of July gala parade, which made its return this year after being canceled in 2020 due to coronavirus pandemic-related capacity limits last year.

With the sun still bright overhead, just after 5 p.m., a crowd gathered along Main Street cheered and clapped as a procession of fire trucks from Lake Placid, Keene Valley, Wilmington and Upper Jay, ambulances, vintage cars, people riding bikes and dogs passed by. A few people in the parade threw candy to kids, including Lake Placid Mayor Art Devlin, North Elba town Supervisor Jay Rand, village Trustee Jason Leon and Lake Placid Volunteer Fire Department members Erik Lamoy and John Fagan. Kids dove for the candy in the street.

Lake Placid’s Fourth of July celebration always draws a crowd — the holiday weekend is usually one of the busiest for tourism here, and always features one of the Lake Placid Horse Shows on the calendar. Yet at this time last year, it wasn’t clear when the Fourth of July parade would be possible again or when hundreds of people could gather together again. In light of the recent lockdowns and isolations, this year’s event seemed to take on new energy.

The evening ended with Lake Placid’s fireworks display, which was also canceled in 2020.