By Mary Owen
Detroit Lake is well known for its fishing, boating, water sports, scenery and wildlife. But on the Saturday nearest the Fourth of July, night skies above the 9-mile-long lake light up with the latest in pyrotechnic technology, drawing more people to the lake than any other time of year.
According to Mayor Pat Carty, president of the Detroit Lake Recreational Area Business Association that oversees the show, more than 10,000 people are expected to view what he calls some of “the best fireworks around” this July 5.
“People reserve spots at the lake as early as January,” Carty said about area campgrounds, which fill early. “Hoover and Cove Creek are excellent campgrounds to watch from.”
Only the Oregon Department of Forestry camps, which are first-come, first-served, will offer last-minute opportunities for families interested in camping during the holiday weekend, he added.
Fireworks over the lake have provided Fourth of July fun for viewers for about the past 15 years, according to Carty. This year promises more of the same with a few surprise twists, he said.
“We’re always trying new things,” he said. “Maybe it will be the newest conical or other firework. Or like one year, five minutes into display, we lit up a sky full of all purple and white fireworks. One of our sponsors that year wanted all purple.”
The show is sponsored by local residents, businesses (including all DLRABA members) and clubs, but a donation bucket will be at the gate to the flats where day-use visitors can watch this year’s performance. The show is set to start at 10 p.m.
“High gas prices this year may stop a few, but we assume the place will be pretty well packed with people for the Fourth anyway,” Carty said.
Detroit Lake’s pyrotechnic extravaganza is one of four Santiam Canyon/Silverton fireworks offerings, including Mill City and Stayton, at dusk on the Fourth, and The Oregon Garden, at dusk on July 3.
Carty said Detroit’s celebration covers the east end of the lake, from Highland to the Santiam arm.
“It’ll light up clear past the island,” he said. “You can stand at the shore of the state park and see the whole thing perfectly. It’s the same at Cove Creek campground.”
Carty credits Western Display Fireworks from Canby for the success of the show each year. He said the sky starts out black each year, but doesn’t stay that way for long. The lowest fireworks go off is at 500 feet in the air, allowing for easy viewing by all, he said.
“Our show is unique,” Carty said enthusiastically. “We get all the latest fireworks that have been developed. The way they are set off, they could almost be set to music. And because of the location and the canyon, we get a lot of bounce, a lot of reverberations. No one ever goes away disappointed!”
