10 PLACES TO WATCH BEAUTIFUL SPARKS
Here are 10 of the most beautiful places in the US for watching fireworks celebrations on its birthday.
1. LAKE AUSTIN, TX
Austin, Texas has a huge number of events around Fourth of July to celebrate the holiday. Check out the Freedom 5000 5k run event, or a number of smaller private fireworks shows from local restaurants before heading over to the Austin Symphony H-E-B July 4th Concert and Fireworks.
2. ST. LOUIS, MO
Three decades of trial and perfection have made the St. Louis Fourth of July spectacle one of the most beautiful in the nation. The day’s festivities begin with two separate running events, preceding a parade, a series of air shows, and the main fireworks event. Watch colors fill the sky and reflect off of the famous arch at this location.
3. KABOOM TOWN, ADDISON, TX
1,500 pounds of fireworks set off lots of sparks when Addison, TX hosts the annual Kaboom Town festival to celebrate Independence Day. From a tiny population of 15,000 this small town gets filled to the brim with nearly 500,000 people every year for the dazzling festival.
This sparks showdown has been cited by the American Pyrotechnics Association as one of the top 10 fireworks displays in the country.
4. NAVY PIER, CHICAGO, IL
Navy Pier in Chicago run firework shows twice a week throughout the summer. Among the most dazzling activities during the display are cruises. Set out onto Lake Michigan to see the explosions paired with music.
5. LAKE TAHOE, CA
Head to the beach at Lake Tahoe for the best view of the Lights on the Lake celebration this year. The bursts of color and light are visible from much of the lake, so you have some options with how you want to view this spectacle.
These sparks are synchronized to music. The show is billed as one of the largest and best Independence Day fireworks displays in the country.
6. BOSTON, MA
Of course Boston, with its revolutionary history and patriotic pride, would host one of the most beautiful fireworks displays in the country. Jennifer Hudson will perform before the show, and the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra will be conducting its 39th annual free outdoor concert. Head to the Charles River for this sparkling beauty.
7. SEATTLE, WA
The Space Needle offers one of the best vantage points for watching fireworks in Seattle, WA.
8. PORTLAND, OR
A four day music festival, Portland's Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival, features over 125 performers and 4 stages beginning on the fourth of July. This festival is one of the largest blues festivals in the nation, and you can head over to Fort Vancouver afterwards to check out a stunning fireworks display.
9. NEW YORK CITY, NY
What would this list be without New York City? Three million people are expected to watch the show this year, the largest in the nation, with over 40,000 individual shells set to explode.
The annual Macy’s fireworks show will be set off from the Brooklyn Bridge and from barges below.
10. WASHINGTON, D.C
The nation’s capital always does it big for the country’s birthday celebration.
Enjoy the Capitol Fourth Concert, followed by the main event of the day, the dazzling fireworks spectacular erupting just above the Washington Monument, lighting up the historic city. Watch sparks fly over the Reflecting Pool.
Read more about Beautiful Sparks, as they relate to Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact, including How to Capture Beautiful Sparks, New Images of Primordial Sparks, Flavor Sparks Bursting in Air, and Ten New Beautiful Spark Filled Art Works.
Enter your own images and ideas about Beautiful Sparks in this week’s creative Photo Competition. Open for entries now until 11:59 p.m. PT on 07.06.14. If you are reading this after that date, check out the current BN Creative Competition, and enter!
PHOTO CREDITS:
- Photo: by Trey Ratcliff. Fourth on Lake Austin.
- Photo: by Tim Hamilton. St. Louis 4th of July Fireworks.
- Photo: by Kelly DeLay. Fireworks Portrait #1.
- Photo: by Chris Smith. Navy Pier Fireworks From Adler Planetarium.
- Photo: by Ron A. Parker. Lake Tahoe Fireworks.
- Photo: by Lei Han. July 4th Boston Pops Fireworks.
- Photo: by Michael B. Fireworks.
- Photo: by Ryan Harvey. Portland, Oregon Fireworks.
- Photo: by Dan Nguyen. Fourth of July Fireworks in New York City.
- Photo: by dpbirds. 4th of July @ Washington, D.C.
- Photo: by Soerfm. Fourth of July fireworks behind the Washington Monument, 1986.
