This weekend’s annual “Christmas by the Lake” celebration in Clear Lake is being recognized as one of the best holiday events in the country. Spokesman Gene Madsen says the weekend starts out tonight (Friday) with a performance by an Elvis impersonator, while Saturday is the big day with several family-friendly activities.
There’s a prince and princess contest for kids five and under, free carriage rides, trolley rides, wagon rides — everything’s free — there’s a petting zoo, pony rides and Santa Claus will be welcoming kids at his house. Madsen says everything leads up to the big lighted Christmas parade through downtown at 5 P.M. Saturday.
Madsen says the parade this year will have more than 40 entries with all of the floats lighted and ten-to-13-thousand people will turn out. After the parade will be a fireworks display. “Christmas by the Lake” was recognized by the cable TV network A-and-E as one of the top-twenty places in the United States to spend the holiday.
It was also named the 2004 Iowa Tourism Event of the Year. For more information, call the Clear Lake Chamber of Commerce at 800-285-5338 or look on-line at “www.clearlakeiowa.com”.