Brightly shining on the Washington waterfront throughout December, boats festooned with lights and decorations have added a touch of Christmas spirit to the town. It’s all part of this year’s Harbor Walk of Lights, and after a month of voting by the public, the Washington Harbor District Alliance has announced this year’s winners.

“We had some really awesome and creative boat decorations,” said WHDA Executive Director Meg Howdy. “It was nice to hear from several of the boaters about the camaraderie that came with it.”

This year’s top vote getters each received gift certificates to spend at the Harbor District Market, a prize Howdy says will allow them to both experience the market and support local business owners.

This year’s winners were:

• First place — Empty Nest  (Ferrell and Tamara Shaffer)
• Second place — Perpetual Karma  (David Rummel)
• Third place — Pop’s Yacht (Tony and Natalie Edwards)

The annual effort is a joint venture between the WHDA and the Washington Waterfront Docks, the city’s public docks on Stewart Parkway. In addition to highlighting the waterfront, Howdy says the event also puts a spotlight on the boaters who tie off at the docks, sometimes staying for months at a time and hailing from all over the world.

“I don’t think we can give enough praise for the dock team and the city for all they are providing for our boaters,” Howdy said. “At one point, we had like 26 people who were living downtown on their boats. We’re 30 nautical miles from the Intracoastal Waterway, so this is another way for us to get the word out that we’re a quick trip in.”

With sharing on social media reaching a wide audience, Howdy says Washington is getting a lot of exposure. Images of the decorated waterfront reach far and wide, giving people yet another reason to visit Washington over the holidays. Groups for boaters, meanwhile, also help spread the word.

“We’ve got tons of people coming and checking out Washington and also other possible visitors coming by boat,” Howdy said. “It’s just a really cool way to engage, not just with locals, but with our surrounding communities and throughout the country.”