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Every March, before the parade kicks off and the crowds fill the streets, the Chicago River turns an unreal shade of green. It doesn’t happen by accident, and it doesn’t last long. Crews from the Chicago Plumbers Union launch their boats at exactly 10 a.m. on Saturday, March 15, spraying a secret formula into the water until the whole stretch between Columbus Drive and Fairbanks Court glows bright as a clover. If you want to catch it, that’s your window. The color fades in hours, and by the next day, it’s mostly gone. So you show up on time or you miss it.
When to catch Chicago’s river dyeing and why it’s bigger than St. Patrick’s Day.
The best way to watch it is from Upper Wacker Drive or one of the nearby bridges. The lower Riverwalk closes during the event, so street-level views aren’t an option. If you can't make it in person, NBC Chicago will stream the whole thing live, so you can still see the river flip from regular to electric green from wherever you are.
And while it’s easy to call it just another tradition, there’s a reason it still happens after all these years. It's not just about tossing dye in the water and calling it a day. It’s about people who decided something was worth keeping alive. It started decades ago and stuck because no one let it fade. The same way someone started it back then, people today take over the job, making sure it stays part of the city’s heartbeat.
That’s the part no one really talks about. Things like this don’t keep going unless someone cares enough to keep them moving. It’s the same everywhere. Whatever you stop paying attention to, whether it’s a friendship, a goal, or even just a habit that made your life better, starts to slip the second you look away. You either show up for it or watch it disappear.
This event works because the people behind it know the details matter. The boats have to be ready. The pipes have to spray at just the right speed. The color has to hit before the crowd gets bored. None of it happens by luck. It happens because someone paid attention to every piece of the process. Which says more than just “look at this cool thing we do.” It’s proof that anything worth having takes work.
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And there’s also the part that stays quiet. The dye recipe? Still a secret. After all these years, nobody outside the team knows what’s in it. That’s part of why the whole thing holds its value. Not everything should be wide open. Some things need protecting. Once you start giving away all the pieces, it doesn’t take long for what made it special to lose its edge.
But even secrets like that have an expiration date. The river turns green in the morning, but the color drains out as the day goes on. Blink, and you might miss the best part. That’s why people line the bridges early and grab their spots while they can. You don’t get to move the moment to a better time. It happens when it happens. You’re either there, or you’re not.
And maybe that’s the real takeaway. It’s not just about the river or the dye or even the parade that follows. It’s about knowing when to stop what you're doing and show up. The things that are worth seeing, the things that stick in your head later, are usually the ones you can’t reschedule. The ones that need you to decide, right now, if you’re in or out.
So if you’re planning to catch the river turn green this year, set your alarm. Be there before 10 a.m. on March 15. Find your spot on Upper Wacker. Watch the water flip from regular to remarkable. And then maybe ask yourself what else in your life could use that same kind of attention. Because the best parts of life don’t last just because they’re good. They last because someone made sure they would.
Topics: Chicagoan, Chicagoan - Culture
