Lilac Festival Armed Forces Torchlight Parade

For decades, families and spectators of all ages have flocked to downtown with their lawn chairs and blankets to line the streets for Spokane’s biggest parade, held every year on the third Saturday in May. Though its namesake lilac blooms are already fading thanks to the unseasonably warm start to spring, their sweet aroma is still heavy and heavenly right at dusk, also the start time of the parade. One can only imagine how the scent would have filled the streets during the parade’s earliest years, back when its floats were loaded with fresh flowers. This year’s parade theme “Lilacs in Wonderland” borrows a whimsical oddness from the world of Lewis Carroll’s Alice, so expect to see some fanciful, fun floats.