The Squamish Days Loggers Sports Festival is a community event that features a parade and logger-themed activities over the BC Day August Long Weekend.

It takes place in the town of Squamish which is in the Sea to Sky region about a 45-minute drive north of Vancouver.

Squamish Loggers Days usually happens on the same weekend as other awesome events including the Honda Celebration of Light, Abbotsford Agrifair and Brigade Days in Fort Langley. The Vancouver Summer Festival (formerly called the Vancouver Bach Festival) also takes place around the same time too.

To learn about the above and other events happening on the BC Day August Long Weekend, see Vancouver’s August Calendar of Events. To learn more about the festival in Squamish, continue reading.

Squamish Days Festival

Squamish Loggers Days usually happens on the Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August Long Weekend, which, in 2023, runs from August 3rd to 6th. In some years, but not all, there are also activities on the holiday Monday.

In 2020 the Squamish Days Loggers Sports Festival was going to happen from July 30th to August 3rd. However, the festival was cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The 2021 Squamish Days Festival was scheduled to take place from July 29th to August 2nd. It too was cancelled, at least initially. The bed races portion of the festival still took place on July 30th that year, and more events were scheduled for September 18th.

After two years of cancellations, the 65th annual Squamish Days Festival took place from July 28th to 31st in 2022. There are usually some ticketed events and some free events.

Most of the actual logging sports events take place at the Al McIntosh Loggers Sports Grounds. The venue’s address is 39555 Loggers Lane. Other activities take place at various locations around town.

Festival Activities

Below is the schedule of activities for the four-day event in 2022. Exact details were subject to change. Details for the 2023 event are still to be confirmed.

Thursday, July 28th, 2022

• Kettle Boil Challenge: an event at the Squamish Valley Golf Course from 6:30 pm that starts the weekend festival. The goal is to get your can of water to boil the fastest. It’s free to watch and costs about $20 to enter.
• Lumberjack Chili Cook-Off: local restaurants supply their chili to the audience members of the Kettle Boil Challenge. The event typically starts at 6:30 pm at the Squamish Valley Golf Course. For only $5 you can be a taster and take part in voting for the best chili there.

Friday, July 29th, 2022

• World Championship Chair Carve: the free event usually runs from 3:00 pm until 5:30 pm at the corner of Winnipeg Street and Cleveland Avenue.
• Squamish Days Bed Races: teams of five people race beds on wheels through a series of obstacles down Cleveland Avenue. The event typically starts at 6:00 pm and is free to watch.

Saturday, July 30th, 2022

• Kids’ Festival: this free event is for children and typically takes place on Saturday morning at started 9:30 am in Junction Park at 37950 Cleveland Avenue. Activities include an obstacle course, craft tables, face painting, live entertainment, and other child and young family-focused activities.
• Novice & Intermediate Loggers Sports Show: a competition for near-beginner and non-professional logger sports participants at the Al McIntosh Loggers Sports Grounds. The show starts at around 1:00 pm. Tickets to watch cost $7 for adults and $5 for seniors and children (ages 6 to 12). During the Loggers Sports Show the festival’s Rotary Beef BBQ also takes place (so bring along your appetite and some extra money!).
• Axe Throw Invitational: an event that is free to watch on Cleveland Avenue (in the Squamish Farmers Market parking lot). Up to 32 entrants compete to see who is the most accurate at throwing axes.
  

Sunday, July 31st, 2022

• Pancake Breakfast: pancakes with eggs and sausage are usually served at Chieftain Centre Mall between 8:00 am and 11:00 am. The cost is around $11 for adults and $6 for both seniors and children ages 12 and under.
• Squamish Days Parade: usually starts at 11:00 am and goes down Cleveland Avenue beginning at Vancouver Street and finishes at Pemberton Avenue. It’s a nice and pleasantly short parade that lasts only around 20 minutes most years. It features logging trucks, bagpipers, community organization floats and more.
• World-Class Open Loggers Sports Show: an international logging competition featuring contestants from New Zealand, Australia, the United States and Canada. It happens at the Al McIntosh Loggers Sports Grounds at 39555 Loggers Lane. The event usually starts at 1:00 pm and costs $13 for adults and $8 for seniors and children (ages 12 & under). It’s a fantastic event and well worth attending. Also, if you don’t get enough BBQ grub from Rotary the day before, they sell more during this day’s show.

World-Class Loggers Sports Show

A number of the events at Squamish Days are interesting and worth checking out. The main event, however, is arguably the World-Class Loggers Sports Show on the Sunday afternoon. Thousands turn out for the world-championship competitions which are fun to watch for all ages.

At the World-Class Loggers Sports Show there are axe-throwing contests, pole climbing races, log rolling competitions, chainsaw cutting championships and all kinds of logger sports-themed entertainment.

Tips and Advice

Below is a list of suggestions to help you make the most of your experience at the Logger Show.

TIP #1: Get to the event early, before the 1:00 pm start, to find good parking and a seat in the shade.

TIP #2: It can get hot in the stands! The shadiest spots are from the top seats in the middle as well as in the bleachers at close to the far end of the outdoor stadium. When choosing your seat, just remember that the sun will continue moving (and so will the shade).

TIP #3: Don’t forget your hat, water bottle and sunscreen. Again, if the sun is out, it can get hot!

TIP #4: Have your mobile phone and social media tools handy. At the event pretty good prizes are usually awarded to members of the audience, but to win you need to follow the announcer’s directions and post photos and things as instructed.

TIP #5: Most of the competitions involve non-motor-powered saws and equipment. In the few cases where power saws are used, however, they can be really loud! Be prepared to cover sensitive ears – some kids even bring ear plugs and ear protectors!

TIP #6: Try the Rotary Club’s BBQ Beef on a Bun. It’s delicious and proceeds benefit worthwhile causes. The Rotarians usually sell out well before the end of the event, however, so a good time to make your purchase is before the 1:00 pm start.

TIP #7: There is usually a large bicycle parking area close to the main gate at the grounds during the festival. Also, Squamish has a great paved cycling trail that goes right past the venue. If you can ride your bike to the logging competitions instead of driving, do it!

More Information

For further details about the event, click Squamish Days Loggers Sports Festival.

Note: There is a lot to do nearby and on the way up from Vancouver. To learn more about the area see our articles about Squamish or the Sea to Sky Region.

For a list of other major Lower Mainland events at other times, check out the August Calendar or click Festivals & Events.

For ideas on other things to do on the August Long Weekend, click BC Day Holiday Events.