Summer Solstice Indigenous Festival's drone show cancelled due to rainfall warning

The Summer Solstice Indigenous Festival (SSIF) kicked off Friday; however, it's drone show was cancelled Saturday due to the rainfall warning that was issued for Ottawa.

The drone show was scheduled for 10 p.m. Saturday night with 250 drones.

"The Festival regrets the cancellation of tonight’s highly anticipated Seven Grandfather Teachings drone show. The international competition Pow Wow is now taking place indoors, impacting the capacity for general public spectator attendance," the festival said in a news release Saturday.

"Presented in partnership with Indigenous Tourism Ontario, the drone show was to take place in the night skies above Mādahòkì Farm tonight. Although drones are capable of handling light rain and up to 30 km/h wind speed, today’s intermittent showers made setting up the show impossible."

SSIF celebrates artists, performers and Canada's diverse Indigenous cultures. It will take place between June 21 and 23 at Mādahòkì Farm, which is an Indigenous gathering place, working farm and cultural attraction.

The party is going to be big this year with a drone show, a glow-in-the-dark Pow Wow and a Pow Wow competition, Trina Simard, CEO of Indigenous experiences and artistic director for SSIF told CTV Morning Live Wednesday.

"We're so excited. We have three days of national programming. We've added a lot on National Indigenous People’s Day," she said.

 A glow-in-the-dark Pow Wow dance party took place Friday night to celebrate National Indigenous People's Day.

Here's the schedule of Indigenous Day Celebration on Friday:

• Traditional long table dinner (two seatings) – feast prepared by chef Tawnya Brant of 6 Nations of the Grand River – live performance by Logan Staats

• Glow-in-the-dark Pow Wow with DJ Shub

• Host drum – Northern Cree

• Ojibwe spirit horses – interactive equine assisted learning with Rhonda Snow

• Mādahòkì marketplace- Indigenous makers and farmers market

• All day cultural entertainment on the celebration stage including hoop dancing, Inuit throat singers and jiggers

• Métis games (hatchet throwing and archery)

• Culinary and creative workshops including birch bark wigwam and canoe building demonstrations

• Free family programming, including a climbing wall and farm play – little animals, hay bales, Birds of Prey, Inukshuk building

The festival says on its website while there is no public parking at the farm, there's a free park and ride shuttle service from Algonquin College. It runs every 30 minutes. More information is available online.