KINGSTON, Ont. -- Don't call it Kingston because today this is Hip-town.

At least that's how it felt Saturday afternoon on the historic streets of the eastern Ontario city as hordes of music fans prepared for a massive tribute to the Tragically Hip.

The hometown rockers are winding into the city for the final stop on their "Man Machine Poem" tour, which many believe will also be an emotional farewell. Lead singer Gord Downie revealed earlier this year that he's battling terminal brain cancer.

If this is goodbye, then Kingstonians want to make sure this send off won't soon be forgotten.

Reminders of the prolific Canadian band are much in evidence in the city's downtown. Local restaurants wiped away daily specials on their sandwich boards to give nods to the Hip's fans.

Even the public transit system pulled out all the stops with a "Welcome Home, Hip" message that flashed across the bus route sign. Rides are free to help ease the onslaught of visitor traffic.

Locals couldn't stop talking about the Hip either.

On the sidewalks it's one of the most commonly overheard conversations as people discuss plans for the big show, which is being televised across the country.

"It's the hometown people that keep them going," said local native Chris Harris.

Early in the afternoon he was passing around a marker pen so visitors could write notes to the Hip on a wall outside the city's market square. By midday the wall was filled and city organizers were scrambling to bring in more paper to accommodate all the messages.

"The Tragically Hip has been the soundtrack to the best years of my life," read a note signed by Natalie from Prince Edward Island.

"You guys were my first concert," another one signed "M+E" said. "Honored to be here for your last."

Sam Mackey, who travelled from Oakville, Ont., grew up on the sounds of the Hip. Tonight she has tickets to the show and can't wait to see her boys again in concert.

She plans to mark the occasion this afternoon by tattooing lyrics from "Grace, Too" on her shoulder.

"Armed with will and determination and grace, too," she said it'll read.

"That just summarizes me," Mackey added. "I'm a very strong type of person, but I have a little bit of grace in there."

Tonight's finale brings the Hip back to where their storied musical journey began in the early 1980s. Tens of thousands of fans -- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau among them -- are expected to be there.

Those with tickets to the sold-out show will be inside the 6,700-seat Rogers K-Rock Centre. Others will gather a few blocks away at Springer Market Square, an outdoor space next to city hall that's streaming the show on a giant screen.

Darcy Foo, a student at the nearby Royal Military College, was one of the first to arrive at the square. He showed up with two friends around 10:30 a.m. in hopes of getting a front-row view of the screen. It turns out they were among the first to show up.

"By the sounds of it, this is where the real party is going to be," he said.

He talked with his friends about how Kingston lore is filled with stories about the Hip. Some of the band's members still have homes here, which means that every once in a while there's a close encounter.

Rumour has it guitarist Rob Baker recently swung by a neighbour's backyard gathering for beers. They didn't see him, but word got around fast.

Michael Molyneaux blindly crossed paths with bassist Gord Sinclair at a friend's graduation party, but didn't recognize him until after their conversation was over.

"He told me he was in a band," Molyneaux said. "I figured it was a crappy little bar band or something."

He's still kicking himself for not figuring it out earlier.