While many places across California were blazing hot on July 4, it was comfortable at the beach in Cayucos, where thousands of people gathered for the Independence Day holiday.
But there’s much more going on in Cayucos on the Fourth of July besides nice weather.
“It’s reminiscent of 14th-century German architecture,” said Rudy Ostoja, describing the sandcastle he built with his wife, Samantha, along with a few other helpers.
The annual sand sculpture contest started at 4 a.m. while the sun was still down and the sand was nice and cool, perfect to pack into shapes of planes, animals and castles.
Right as the sculpture contest wrapped up at 10 a.m., the parade began. Dozens of floats made their way through town in one of the community’s parades of the year.
Parade watchers of all ages loved the creativity and patriotic colors.
“I’ve been coming here since I was a child. My family lives here. It’s really fun to see how the community shows up. We all come together, we share food, we share laughs, and we share a really fun time at the parade,” said Alysia Hendry of Los Osos.
“We come out every year on the 4th to get out of the sun, beat the heat a little bit. It’s just so family-friendly, from the parade to the sandcastles, and end the day in the water,” added Wes Martin of San Luis Obispo.
The festivities will wrap up with a fireworks show at the Cayucos Pier at 9 p.m.
