The 2017 "Iron Man" champion. To win this category a dancer must outlast their fellow dancers without stopping or missing a beat of the drum.
Photo by Danielle Da Silva

It was in 1961 that band member Rosemary Odjig raised the tradition of the "pow wow" in her hometown of Wikwemikong after witnessing a pow wow in another community and realizing the importance of practicing and remembering the teachings of her community's ancestors. What started as the "Wikwemikong Indian Days" gathering almost 60 years ago is now known as the "Wikwemikong Annual Cultural Festival" and is revered as one of the largest and longest-running pow wows in North America.

After postponing the 60th celebration due to COVID-19, the annual cultural festival will take place on July, 30 - August 1st, 2022.

Wikwemikong is "unceded territory" on Manitoulin Island in Ontario, Canada, which means that the land has never been surrendered in a treaty or otherwise. It also means the land is entirely governed by the First Nations community. "Manitoulin" means "spirit island" in Anishinaabemowin (Ojibway language), and it is the world's largest freshwater island, making it an ideal location for First Nations communities to settle away from the encroaching colonisers more than a century ago.

Rosemary Odjig's vision of an annual pow wow in the spirit of reviving teachings, stories, language and traditions seems to have become a success. Today the Wikwemikong Annual Culture Festival pow wow is a fun way for families and friends to get together, to dance and sing to the hypnotic beat of the drum in the Sacred Circle, eat local food, and share stories, language, knowledge and crafts with each other. Talented drum groups and dancers partake in friendly competition for cash prizes, offering mesmerizing and educational entertainment for spectators. Everyone from all walks of life are welcome to watch, support and participate.

You can enjoy a host of authentic Anishinaabe arts and crafts, and experiences like the champion Anishinaabe dance, cuisine, performances, and cultural traditions of the Anishaabek people of the Three Fires Confederacy-Ojibwe, Odawa and Pottawatomi peoples.

Daily Cultural Pavilion experiences include: Regalia, drum and dance teachings, history of Odawa Mnis (Manitoulin Island), introduction to the Anishnaabe language, and Anishnaabe art and craft demonstrations.