Idaho Powwows Reviewed

Shoshone-Bannock Festival, Fort Hall, ID, August

The powwow is just one of many events gong on for this festival. Plenty of camping is available and shelters are available to early arrivals. There is some public seating but you'll probably want to bring your own chairs. There is no admission charge and there are plenty of vendors and food booths at reasonable prices. This is a large powwow that draws in dancers from all over. There are usually contest specials that pay really well. One drawback is that the children are kept up very late in order to contest. Even Tiny Tots end up dancing well after they should be in bed. This doesn't help families much. Organizers should let the children do their competing early. Electrical problems in the arena in 1999 delayed the awards until 2 a.m. Monday morning, hampering travel plans. This would be a more enjoyable powwow if the organizers would keep contesting to reasonable hours and find ways around the glitches that will allow travelers to return home at a decent hour.

Year 2000 powwow showed improvement. The kids had their contests done earlier in the day and weren't kept up at night. Much better reviews this time around compared to last year.