Grand Portage National Monument Rendezvous Days

Saturday evening dance.

NPS Photo / A. Hernandez

 

 

Grand Portage Rendezvous Days is Free and Open to the Public

It is 1797, the Rendezvous is in full swing, and over a thousand people work and linger within the palisades and surrounding area. North West Company agents, clerks, and partners gather to conduct business and celebrate their good fortune. They arrive by canoe with the voyageurs bringing trade goods from the east, and furs from the north. Anishinaabe, Cree, and other Native families gather by the shore to trade and reunite with friends and family, all right here in Grand Portage.

During Rendezvous Days, costumed interpreters reenact 18th century life of the fur trade era. Park rangers and volunteer reenactors provide you with a unique view into the hustle and bustle of Grand Portage over 220 years ago.

Rendezvous Days - August 8, 9, 10, 2025

Full Schedule Below

Grand Portage Rendezvous Days is a celebration where friends and family return year after year to attend and participate in events held in the community. Held on the second weekend of August, this event is one you do not want to miss! Music, dancing, craft demonstrations, and hands-on workshops ensure an exciting visit to Grand Portage National Monument.

• Admission is free. Visitors are not required to wear period clothing. Come as you are!
• No vendors, demonstrations only
• Visit our Eating & Sleeping page for information about where to stay.
• Directions to the Monument from Duluth, Minnesota.
• No pets (except service animals) within the stockade (Historic Depot)

For more information:

Questions? Please call 218-475-0123 or email us.

Rendezvous Days Pow Wow

The Pow Wow, hosted by the Grand Portage Band, is located just up the road within walking distance of the Monument.

• For questions about the Pow Wow, including vendors, please email Brittany Anderson at the offices of the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
• For details about the Pow Wow and schedule (coming soon) see the Grand Portage Rendezvous Days Facebook Page
• Service animals are allowed outside of the arena as long as they have their vests on. All dogs are prohibited within the dance arena.

 

Map of Grand Portage during Rendezvous Days. Click to download an area map.

NPS Graphic

Map of the Grand Portage National Monument Grounds Including Historic Encampment

Other Grand Portage maps..

 

Additional Map Alternative Text

Map of a section of Grand Portage National Monument adjacent to Lake Superior. An arrow pointing toward the top of the map indicates north. Grand Portage Bay of Lake Superior is on the bottom right: a gray shape bordered by a wavy diagonal line near the middle of the map. At the top of the map, an arrow points to the Pow Wow Grounds.The following descriptions begin in the upper right corner and move clockwise around the map:

• Reenactor parking labeled with a P parking symbol.

• The Stone Bridge is labeled with lines over the main road. Grand Portage Creek is labeled.

• The Historic Encampment is indicated with a line drawing of tents.

• A First Aid station is marked with a cross within a circle below the Historic Encampment. A footbridge crosses a creek from the encampment to the Historic Depot.

• West of the creek is the Historic Depot. Within the Depot are the Great Hall, Kitchen, and Gardens.

• An Information Station is marked by a question mark within a circle. The Workshop Tent is north of Information.

• Southeast of the Depot is a dock jutting out into the bay.

• West of the Depot are wheelchair accessible restrooms, the Canoe Warehouse, and Ojibwe Village.

• The Heritage Center is across the main road to the southwest. Parking and a shuttle stop are adjacent to the Heritage Center. The shuttle runs continuously from 6 am to 10 pm Saturday and 6 am to 5 pm Sunday.

• The Mount Rose Trail begins in the northeast corner of the Depot and continues across the main road to a summit of 906 feet (276 meters). The trail continues from the summit to the parking lot/picnic area in the lower left corner of the map.

• An arrow points to the Trading Post and Casino, .75 miles (1.2 km)

 

NPS Photo / GM Spoto

Rendezvous Days 2025 - August 8, 9, 10
Dressing the Fur Trade

This year the theme is all things textiles - clothing, finger weaving, moccasins, rabbit fur blankets, beaded garters...

 

The Stone Bridge Singers open the weekend.

NPS Photo

Rendezvous Days 2025 Program Schedule

FRIDAY, August 8th

10 am: Stone Bridge Singers Drum Ceremony - Great Hall Lawn
11 am: Cornhusk Dolls/Voyageur Action Figures - Great Hall Porch
12 pm: Native Art from the Time of the American Revolution/ Michael Galban
1 pm: Thread Button Making - Workshop Tent
1:30: Visit a Seamstress/Shirt Sewing - Great Hall Porch
2 pm: Historic Camp Tour - Meet at Information Tent
2 pm: Kids' Bead Hunt - Historic Encampment
2 pm: Thread Button Making - Workshop Tent
2:30 pm: Block Print Fabric - Workshop Tent
3 pm: HIstoric Camp Tour - Meet at Information Tent
3 pm: Tartans & Kilts in the Fur Trade - Historic Encampment
3:30 pm: Camp Chore Challenge Contest - Inside the West Gate
4 pm: A Visit to the Dye Pots - Historic Encampment
5 pm: Monument Closes

All Day:

• Authentic Historical Garment Collection presented by “The Clothing Bureau” in the Great Hall
• Firearms of the Fur Trade with Mark Sage

 

SATURDAY, August 9th

9:30 am: Moccasin Roundtable Discussion - Workshop Tent
9:30 am: Kid's Scavenger Hunt - Historic Encampment
10 am: Rugged Voyageur Contest - Inside West Gate
10 am: The Rabbit-skin Blanket - Ojibwe Village
11 am: HIstoric Camp Tour - Meet at Information Tent
11 am: The Great Lacrosse Match - Great Hall Yard
11:30 am: Historic Garden Tour - Kitchen Garden
1:30 pm: Fingerwoven Sashes - Great Hall Porch
2 pm: A Visit to the Dye Pots - Historic Encampment
2:30 pm: Visit the Hatmaker - Hat Shop in the Great Hall
3 pm: Indigenous Dress in the 18th Century - Michael Galban
3 pm: Historic Camp Tour - Meet at Information Tent
4 pm: Over the Waterfall: Live Music - Great Hall Porch
5 pm: Monument Closes

All Day:

• Authentic Historical Garment Collection presented by “The Clothing Bureau” in the Great Hall
• Firearms of the Fur Trade with Mark Sage

8-10 pm: Live Music & Dancing, Open to all, Great Hall Lawn

 

NPS Graphic / GM Spoto

Special Programs

Native Arts from the Time of the American Revolution: A look at a rare European collection.

Indigenous Dress in the 18th Century: A comprehensive survey of surviving examples.

Michael Galban

Director of the Seneca Art & Culture Center at Ganondagan State Historic Site. An international expert of Native American material culture and art, he is a member of the board of directors of the Museum Association of New York (MANY) and worked as a consultant for various film and television projects. Michael is the author of a monograph on the historical art of Robert Griffing and has published broadly on Haudenosaunee material culture.

Original 18^th & 19^th Century Clothing by The Clothing Bureau

Thomas Shaw will display his collection throughout the weekend in the Great Hall.

Rabbit Skin Clothing & Weaving for the Indigenous North

Ashley Rave Shawanda (Ho-Chunk) will demonstrate and discuss the use of rabbit skin clothing.

Beefhide Souliers & Leather Aprons

Michael Tharp will demonstrate the rare skill of making leather souliers and botte savages, as well as leather aprons.

What’s in the Dye Pot & Traditional Dyes

Join Master Dyer Mary Silver as she presents a rainbow of colors obtained and learned through history and trial and error.

Thread Buttons, How Were They Made and Used?

Join Rob Jump as he makes and talks thread buttons.

A Visit to the 1797 Borradaille Hat Shop

Join hatmaker Austin Haney (Muddy River Hatter) as he discusses early hat making.

The Finger-woven Sash an Iconic Fashion of the Voyageur

Join fingerweaver Tiffany Christine Turner and friends as they demonstrate and discuss the history of one of the most iconic article of dress in the fur trade.

Tartans and Kilts in this Scottish Dominated Fur Trade

Kilt maker Isaac Walters of I.H. Walters Factotum will present the topic.

Walk a mile in his shoes…everything you wanna know about moccasins

Isaac Walters, David Turner, Karl Koster lead this discussion about traditional Indigenous footwear.

Historic Garden Tour

Deb Walker & Karl Koster talk about the historic heirloom vegetable garden.

Visit a Seamstress/Hand-stitching a Shirt & Block Printed Fabric

Sarah Reinke demonstrates fabric printing and sewing by hand.

 

 

 

Thank you to our generous sponsor!

If you’re interested in finding out how you can support Grand Portage National Monument, please visit our partner, National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation (NPLSF), at nplsf.org for more information. The mission of NPLSF is to provide financial support for projects and programs that preserve the natural resources and cultural heritage of all five national parks along Lake Superior. NPSLF is charged with their stewardship and is committed to their long term support, preservation, and enhancement.