Ulster Herald

Omagh awash with colour for St Patrick’s Day celebrations

St Patrick waves as he passes through the crowds in Omagh

COLOURFUL floats with the equally elaborate costumes once again made St Patrick’s Day one to remember for the people of West Tyrone.

Hundreds lined High Street in Omagh for the parade which has now become a must-see annual event. Visitors from local villages, as well as much further afield, enjoyed a superb spectacle of green despite the cold and occasionally damp conditions.

A cowboy stilt walker waves to the crowds in Omagh.

Local community and youth groups, sporting clubs and businesses reflected their wide range of activities. Their floats reflected months of planning and preparation, and the excitement was clear as the parade made its way from the Leisure Complex through Drumragh Avenue and finally to the crescendo at Market Street and High Street.

There were certainly many tired legs and arms among those young and young at heart following the parade, just as there were for those more energetic participants in the Gortin Gold Rush Cycle and Altamuskin Five Mile Run.

Young musicians perform for the crowds.

Hundreds of people enjoyed the scenery around the Gortin Glens and surrounding area for the cycle run, which provided the perfect prelude to the festivities of later in the day. The hills of Altamuskin also attracted scores of runners who didn’t really mind the tough five mile course through this historic area.

Visitors from Ghana join in the St Patrick's Day parade in Omagh with the Inishowen Carnival group.

A band performs for the huge crowds turning out on a sunny St Patrick's Day.

Ian Lee, Christopher Norris Lee and Alex Lee from Montreal, Canada, enjoying a drop of the black stuff in Main Street, Omagh.