Glengarry: a Kilt Skate Winter Carnival

The last kilt skate of the 2020 season was held in Williamstown, in the Township of South Glengarry. The kilt skate combined with other indoor and outdoor events to create something new: a winter carnival with a Scottish heritage theme.

The Glengarry kilt skate already has a reputation for innovation, with the introduction in 2018 of first indoor kilt skate. .This past season, Montreal, Toronto, Fergus and Winnipeg each followed North Glengarry’s original example. This year, the weather outside was perfect for a winter carnival, but skaters didn’t seem to mind the indoor venue.

The carnival in South Glengarry Township began with a parade led by the South Glengarry Pipes and Drums.

The band played on…

The VIPs were introduced: from left to right South Glengarry Councillors Sam McDonnell, Martin Lang, Stephanie Jaworski; Tim Mills, the Township’s Chief Administrative Officer; Frank Prevost, Mayor of South Glengarry Township, and Jim McDonell, Member of Provincial Parliament for Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry. That’s Jim waving to the audience.

After the opening ceremonies, he joined his granddaughter for a few turns on the ice.

Jim certainly wasn’t alone.

Every generation got into the skating.

Some of the kilt skaters were very elegant in their attire.

Others made their fashion statement with tartan shorts and hockey socks.

It was a time for the whole family to get out and enjoy some winter fun.

For the kids, one of the big hits was taking a turn to skate with the hockey stick saltire.

They certainly put the flag to good use.

Outside in the foyer, kids were giving away programs and tattoos to everyone who wanted them.

As far as I observed, there was only one person over the age of 10 who applied the tattoo.

Meanwhile, upstairs from the hockey rink, South Glengarry hosted a good old-fashioned social…

…complete with dancing, courtesy of the MacCulloch Dancers and the Coleman  Highland Dancers …

….the MacPhee Fiddlers (here tuning up)…

…Celtic rock, courtesy of The Hallions…

…complementary shortbread…

…and birthday cake…

…free hot chocolate for kilt skaters…

…and for those wanting to melt the chill after coming off the ice, a cash bar.

Apart from the cake and shortbread, what interested the little ones most were the skaters.

And why not? The carnival was not just for kilt skaters: it also featured a figure skating demonstration by the Char-Lan Skating Club.

So that’s what was happening indoors at South Glengarry’s Char-Lan Recreation Centre. What made this year’s Glengarry kilt skate unique was the array of outdoor activities for the winter carnival.

A snow hill had been built outside the arena to furnish the kids with an ice slide.

A firepit nearby gave carnival revelers an opportunity to roast marshmallows.

Free wagon rides were available.

Scores of people waited their turn to take a ride through this picturesque Ontario town.

There’s much to see. The Glengarry townships were settled by Loyalist refugees from the American Revolution and by Scottish immigrants fleeing the Highland Clearances. But Williamstown has something more: it was also the place where the fur trader, explorer and cartographer David Thompson retired after his adventures with the North West Company.

He couldn’t have picked a prettier location. Williamstown is off the beaten track. It’s well worth a visit for those attending the Maxville Highland games further north, or travelers to Cornwall to the west. In August, it hosts the the oldest annual fair in Canada. That proud Scottish heritage includes some of the earliest examples of hockey, played on the frozen ponds — a heritage celebrated at the Char-Lan Centre.

Add to that heritage a new kind of winter carnival — celebrating both winter and Scottish heritage with bare knees and ice.