Harry and Meghan spotted at 4th of July parade with Archie
Their detractors like to paint them as woke and out of touch – but Harry and Meghan could pass for a typical American family in these delightful photos taken at a traditional 4th of July parade. The notoriously-private Duke and Duchess of Sussex stunned onlookers by turning up at Monday’s patriotic bash in Jackson Hole, Wyoming with their three-year-old son Archie. Images obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com reveal the young family sitting down on a dusty sidewalk as they watch a procession of floats, tractors and cowboys and rodeo girls on horseback.
Thrilled Archie can be seen sucking on a red lollipop and clutching a miniature US flag as doting parents Harry, 37, and Meghan, 40, chat to friends with a bodyguard standing nearby. The California-based Prince and his Suits actress wife are known to fiercely guard their privacy and are rarely spotted in public – even less so with their red-headed little boy and daughter Lilibet, one.
But onlookers say the cagey couple appeared to let their guard down in picturesque Jackson Hole, a trendy ski resort town where Kanye West, Sandra Bullock and Harrison Ford own pricey property. In fact the Sussexes made such a favorable impression that one parade-goer – a fellow Brit – was overheard urging them to swap their ritzy Californian life for the Cowboy State, telling Harry: ‘You’d fit right in here.’
Lilibet was not spotted at the July 4th celebration and it’s not known whether she traveled with the trio to Wyoming, where they were joined by Meghan’s pilates instructor pal Heather Dorak and her children. The group went completely unnoticed until 15 minutes into the two-hour parade billed locally as a ‘patriotic celebration of culture and community’, according to eagle-eyed sisters Susan Mills Echols and Deborah Mills Walls.
The siblings from Charlotte, North Carolina were in Jackson Hole as part of a road trip and had arrived at the 10am procession to find a ‘well-built’ man guarding four fold-up camping chairs. ‘We were standing nearby and this big guy told us he was saving the seats for a family. I said, Ok, that’s fine. And a little bit later he said it again. I asked him if he wanted us to move but he said no, no. It was all a bit strange,’ said fourth grade teacher Susan, 58.
‘In my mind I was thinking, what is this, is he expecting the Royal family or something? I turned around a minute later and I saw Meghan Markle and little Archie. And then behind her came Harry. ‘I’m not a huge Royal follower so I Googled them really quickly just to make sure that I was right. I sent a text to my daughter and she wouldn’t believe me. ‘She wanted a picture to prove it was them. It was completely out of the blue and really neat.’ Susan said Harry and Meghan ignored the chairs and chose instead to sit on the sidewalk so they could play with Archie at his eye-level and make sure he didn’t wander off.
She also saw Meghan scoop up a handful of candy treats that had been tossed into the crowd, unwrapping a lollipop for Archie then slipping an ice cream sandwich into her bag for later. The youngster wore a collarless striped shirt, pale blue pants and a red, black and white baseball cap emblazoned with California’s Bear Flag – a nod to the family’s home in the upscale celeb enclave of Montecito where the Sussexes typically travel around in blacked-out SUVS surrounded by security.
Megan paired skinny jeans and a white tank top with a brown fedora hat while Harry wore a blue-grey polo shirt, shorts and an olive baseball cap. Dorak, who spoke out in the Duchess’s defense in the wake of her tell-all Oprah Winfrey interview, wore a camel jumpsuit.
‘Jackson Hole is not a large place and so it was just a very small parade. They were throwing out ice cream sandwiches and ice pops and candy. It was pretty funny to watch,’ added Debbie, 52, a professor of art education at UNC Charlotte. ‘Harry and Meghan were just sitting down like everyone else, enjoying the show. They were very down to earth and very normal. ‘You could tell it was all about Archie for them. They were doting on him, playing with him. He was so cute and well mannered. And he looked thrilled with his lollipop.’
A two-and-a-half hour flight from California, Jackson Hole is close to both the Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks and is famed for its skiing, fishing and rafting. It’s situated in liberal-leaning Teton County, where 67 percent of voters opted for the Democrats in the 2020 election. The state of Wyoming also has no income tax so residents don’t have to forfeit some of their earnings as they would in California or New York. Famous Jackson Hole residents include Kanye West, who bought a sprawling ranch with his then wife Kim Kardashian.
Harrison Ford and drag queen turned media mogul RuPaul also own property there, alongside tech tycoons and business CEOs. It is not known who Harry and Meghan were visiting but it is possible any number of their high net-worth connections have a pad in Jackson Hole. Or they could have rented one of the ultra-luxury holiday properties there that fetch up to $40,000 a week.
‘They didn’t stay too long as I think Meghan wanted to get Archie out of the sun,’ Deborah added. ‘It was an opportune exit as just after they left people started spraying the crowd with water jets. ‘An older lady had asked Harry if she could sit in one of their chairs and he said yes, of course, being a perfect gentleman.
‘Funnily enough, the lady happened to be British and she explained to Harry that she and her husband had moved to Jackson Hole two years earlier and loved it. They told Harry he should think about moving there.’ Pictured: Sisters Susan Mills Echols (left) and Deborah Mills Walls (right).
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have kept a relatively low profile since returning to the US following the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations last month. They were spotted making a trip to see neighbor and showbiz pal Winfrey last week and made an appearance at a California polo tournament. Harry also made a virtual appearance at the Diana Awards on what would have been his mother’s 61st birthday.
