Gareth Mitchelson Championships are held at the Cowal Gathering in Dunoon on the last Saturday in August each year. Whilst still at school Mitchelson was a member of the world-renowned British Caledonian Airways pipes and dance corps, performing at Scottish events all over the world. In 1985 Gareth and Deryck Mitchelson commissioned new work and music for inclusion in Glasgow's Mayfest dance festival and formalised this with the formation of the CelticSpirit Dance Company as a limited liability company. Other notable performances have included participation in many folk festivals and fiddlers' rallys, in the Capitol Theatre and His Majesty's Theatre in Aberdeen,
Lake Cowal benefits economically to the town of West Wyalong with increased employment. Barrick Gold was granted a "Section 90" by National Parks and Wildlife. Lake Cowal is known as the heartland of the Wiradjuri nation and is rich in artifacts. Wiradjuri elder Neville "Chappy" Williams led a campaign to save Lake Cowal and the Wiradjuri heartland. The Lake Cowal Campaign aims to prevent further gold mining by Evolution Mining in the environmentally-fragile area around Lake Cowal and to stop land degradation and possible toxicity problems from the mine and its tailing dams. The Wiradjuri people are being joined in their campaign