There are numerous ways to celebrate Canada Day in Whistler this July 1, with a slate of programming that includes drumming, yoga, live painting, street entertainment, and free admission to the resort’s First Nations museum, the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre.
In a release sent out Wednesday, June 23, the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) said it “recognizes that this July 1 will be a time to reflect on all of Canada’s history, including its past and present truths about our relationship with Indigenous people.”
The RMOW has installed 215 orange hearts marking a path between the Maury Young Arts Centre and the SLCC to represent the children who lost their lives at the Kamloops residential school and never returned home.
Admission to the SLCC is free for the day, where the Boarder X exhibit is ongoing. A compilation of interdisciplinary contemporary art by Indigenous artists from across Canada, the show demonstrates how Indigenous people connect to the land through skateboarding, snowboarding and surfing.
Over at Olympic Plaza, there will be yoga offered from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m., followed by the Spo7ez Performance Team Drum Circle at 10:45 a.m. From noon to 4 p.m., the plaza will host Whistler’s Moving Meadows art showcase, live painting by local artists Dave “Pepe” Petko, Take Sudo and Ben Poechman, and a scavenger hunt.
From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Town Plaza Gazebo will be home to a large, paint-by-numbers mural courtesy of Paintillio.
Street entertainment, including Treeline aerialists and roving characters, will take place throughout the village from noon to 4 p.m.
Whistler’s parks will also feature food trucks on Canada Day, including crepes, gelato, pizza, burgers and more.
Whistler Transit will also be free for the day, as well as secure bike parking at Lost Lake, Rainbow Park and Whistler Olympic Park.
For more info, visit whistler.ca/canadaday.
