'Their heart is always in Algoma' (9 photos)

What began four years ago as a birthday party that would showcase local talent as well as an impressive Algoma venue, has grown into a three-day music festival with vendors, workshops and a variety of other activities.

This past weekend, SooToday.com ventured out to catch up with the annual Searchmont Music Festival hosted at Searchmont Resort.

We spent Saturday evening enjoying live entertainment from Algoma artists whose current homes are both near and far.

"Algoma actually extends to Toronto because several people have moved away, but their heart is always in Algoma," explained Robin MacIntyre, artistic director for the Searchmont Festival Society.

While the Searchmont Music Festival is intended for the people that reside in Algoma, it also strives to show those that live outside the region that the resort is a viable year-round facility.

"A community that does not have facilities on the outreaches and outskirts is a closed community. Searchmont Resort is an amazing venue and the whole community of Searchmont is an amazing satellite bedroom community to Sault Ste. Marie," MacIntyre told us. "It's almost like we're living on an island and we need to step outside of our boundaries to showcase our city."

Saturday night's entertainment included Wild Iris, Cody McMillan, Sudbury's JoPo and the RiZe, and featured performer Bill Priddle (pictured).

Other artists included in the weekend-long entertainment roster were The Wild Turkeys, The O'Schraves, Jackson Reed, Guy Smith, Tiller, Britta Wolfert, Lindsay Pugh, and numerous others.

Keep an eye on www.searchmontmusicfestival.com for details about next year's Searchmont Music Festival.

For more information about Searchmont Resort, please click here.

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