BELFAST — It was cold and windy in downtown Belfast on Veterans Day, Nov. 11,  but that didn’t stop the public from turning out for the annual Veterans Day Parade.

The parade kicked off at 11 a.m., leaving from Belfast Area High School and making its way to Main Street as participants marched down to the waterfront.

While last year saw many clad in sweatshirts, this year the temperature had yet to break freezing when dozens of veterans and their supporters walked through the streets. Those that waited on the downtown sidewalks came prepared, most in parkas and winter hats, and cheered as the many vets passed by.

The parade concluded at the waterfront, where participants and spectators gathered to take part in an annual ceremony.

There are more than 116,500 veterans in Maine, according to a 2016 National Center for Veterans Analysis and Statistics report. This includes  almost 96,000 wartime veterans and around 21,000 peacetime veterans.

Erica Thoms can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com