The Last Gathering of Nations, The End of an Era, Upcoming Pow Wows and more!
Published 8 days agoΒ β’Β 8 min read
I'm back. I'm tired. And I wouldn't trade a single second of it.
Gathering of Nations 2026 is in the books, and what a way to go out.
If you've never been, picture this: 36 drums, over 2,000 registered dancers, food lines stretching past an hour, and people waiting two hours just to get into the parking lot.
The arena was electric from the moment it opened to the moment it closed, and I mean that literally. Saturday, we arrived at 7:30 a.m. for rehearsal for the retirement of Miss Indian World, and we didn't leave the powwow grounds until 4:15 the next morning. We did manage to sneak in a 30-minute nap in the car at some point β don't judge us β but other than that, it was nonstop: shooting photos, capturing video, and producing the livestream the entire time.
The dancing was incredible. The singing was incredible. Even the gourd dancing had some of the best singing I've heard in a long time. The energy in that arena never let up, not for a single session, all weekend long.
And knowing this was the last one made every moment hit differently.
This powwow is going to leave a real hole, for powwow people, for everyone who had it on their bucket list, and honestly for Albuquerque itself. An event this size is a massive economic driver for that city, and that impact is going to be felt. It was a once-in-a-generation gathering, and I think everyone there knew it.
Now for the content avalanche headed your way. π
I personally shot over a thousand photos this weekend, and I also brought along a photographer and videographer friend of mine, because I knew going in that we needed to capture as much as humanly possible. I haven't even seen his footage yet, but I'll be getting his photos and videos this week, so expect even more content rolling out over the coming days.
We're also uploading all of the recordings to our YouTube channel, so make sure you're following the Gathering of Nations playlistβ I'll drop the link below.
If you missed the livestream, good news: the Gathering of Nations committee has asked me to plan a full replay of the event, possibly sometime this fall.
Quick heads up on the Pendleton blanket giveaway and the Spin to Win β both have been extended. There was a bug that popped up during the weekend, and honestly, I just didn't have a spare moment to deal with it while I was on-site. Both are still running, so if you were participating, keep going. Good luck! π€
βNorth Americaβs Largest Pow Wowβ April 24 β 25, 2026 Powwow Grounds Expo New Mexico/Tingley Coliseum Albuquerque, NM, U.S.A.
In anticipation to the Gathering of Nations Pow Wow we have a special giveaway a Pendleton Blanket and more! Make sure you enter for your chance to win!
AND a new spin to win game where you can win prizes instantly starts this week!
The words chocolate, avocado, barbecue, hurricane, hammock, and toboggan all come from Indigenous languages. You use Native vocabulary every single day β and that's just the beginning of what mainstream history left out.
Subscribe to This Week In Native History for more facts like this!
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