The fourth contestant on the Sechrist Lake, Sawmill Lake and Irish Lake decorated their boat according to the Disney movie “Moana.” They came in first place for that parade route.

WARSAW — It was a hot afternoon with temperatures in the low 90s when the participants for the Barbee Lakes Flotilla lined up at one of the two parade routes. Registration for entries began promptly at 1 p.m. for both routes. Captains on pontoon boats then led the rest of the motorized boats around the lakes beginning at 2 p.m.

Judges were present along each of the routes to judge the flotilla entries on who best decorated their boat according to the Disney theme. “Moana” and “Frozen” seemed to be the two most popular Disney movies among the boat decorations.

For the first year residents along each of the lakes were encouraged to join in the flotilla by decorating either their deck or land according to their favorite Disney movies and characters.

One route began at the Christian Camp pier on Kuhn Lake, entered Barbee Lake and travelled counterclockwise before returning to Kuhn Lake, traveling counterclockwise before ending where they began.

Judges pay close attention to each of the flotilla participants as they go by. These were the judges for the Sechrist Lake route.

The second parade route lined up at Dave Doctor’s property on Sechrist Lake. This route traveled to Sawmill Lake, going counterclockwise, then onto Irish Lake where they proceeded around the lake counterclockwise. These participants then returned to Sechrist Lake where they proceeded along in a counterclockwise fashion until they ended where they began.

Each of the flotilla routes had plenty of spectators. The lake shores were filled with people to watch the flotilla. The waters were equally full with people taking full advantage of the high temperatures to spend the afternoon in the lake.

Once each of the participants on both flotilla routes had returned to their respective starting point, the winners for best decorated boats on each route were announced. Each of these winners took home a $100 prize for winning first place.

The winner of the Sechrist Lake, Sawmill Lake and Irish Lake route was contestant four with a “Moana” theme and a very genuine looking Maui. The second place winner was boat two who decorated according to “Lilo and Stitch,” though they stated many incorrectly guessed they were decorated as “Moana.”

We are currently waiting to hear the winner of the Barbee Lake and Kuhn Lake route.