About Rendezvous Days and Pow Wow

The Grand Portage passes through the winterer's camp to the depot's north gate.

NPS / Mark Tessier

 

North West Company partners discuss fur trade business.

NPS Photo / Mike Plummer-Steen

Historical Background

• The hustle and bustle of summer activity peaked with the North West Company Rendezvous held here at Grand Portage. This was the time when furs from wintering posts, which reached into Canada, were delivered down the historic Grand Portage.
• The annual Rendezvous is still celebrated every year during the second weekend of August.
• The event is held in conjunction with the Rendezvous Days Pow Wow, sponsored by the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (Ojibwe).
• The annual gathering is our biggest and most grand celebration of the year, a time when Grand Portage comes alive and reflects on its rich heritage.
• Re-enactors from across the country and Canada gather to camp and challenge each other to games and skills from our historic past.
• This is one event you do not want to miss. Music, dancing, craft demonstrations and hands-on workshops ensure an exciting weekend at Grand Portage National Monument!

Reminiscences of past Rendezvous Days and Pow Wow

View the National Park Service Centennial 2016 Rendezvous Days and Pow Wow photo gallery.