Building a frozen wonderland at the Midway Ice Castle
Brent Christensen places icicles around the Midway Ice Castle's main fountain feature on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015. MEREDITH FORREST KULWICKI for the Daily Herald
Ben Kohler, right, of Midway, uses a hammer drill to create a pathway in the ice as John Mellor, left, of Coalsville, rakes the loose ice out at the Midway Ice Castle on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015. MEREDITH FORREST KULWICKI for the Daily Herald
Al Larsen, of Wallsburg, Utah, uses icicles and "slush" to create a wall of the Midway Ice Castle on Friday, Dec. 18, 2015. "All we are really doing is making suggestions of where we want the water to do next," Larsen said. MEREDITH FORREST KULWICKI for the Daily Herald
Casey Horne, of Midway, harvests an icicle for the Midway Ice Castle on Friday, Dec. 18, 2015. This is his first year building the ice castle. "Different kind of construction then I'm used to," Horne said. MEREDITH FORREST KULWICKI for the Daily Herald
A sprinkler head sprays water over the Midway Ice Castle, including the freshly placed icicles to the right, on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015. MEREDITH FORREST KULWICKI for the Daily Herald
Stephen Breeze, of Midway, places an icicle along the front wall of the Midway Ice Castle on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015. MEREDITH FORREST KULWICKI for the Daily Herald
Brent Christensen runs through the Midway Ice Castle as he works to organize the building on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015. MEREDITH FORREST KULWICKI for the Daily Herald
Brent Christensen, left, instructs Jacob Dorrough, right, on how to place icicles to create an archway at the Midway Ice Castle on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015. MEREDITH FORREST KULWICKI for the Daily Herald
A thin layer of ice forms quickly on the coats, pants and gloves of the 25-member Midway Ice Castle build team. For the last month, they worked under a near constant mist of water, growing icicles and placing them to build the castle structure.
After a very short season last year, just three days, the team is excited to see this ice castle scheduled to open for the 2016 season on Friday.
“Midway is always going to be a risk, and this year we are pretty fortunate,” said Brent Christensen, designer and founder, Ice Castles, LLC. “The tough part of relying on mother nature, is knowing that you may not even open to the public on a given year.”
Ryan Davis, co-owner of Ice Castles said they need consistent days with high temperatures below 29 degrees to grow the approximately 1.5-acre castle near the Soldier Hollow Olympic venue a few miles outside of Midway, Utah.
During a day of construction, the team harvests approximately 15,000 icicles and sets them using ‘slush,’ a wet snow that dries into ice and holds the icicle firmly in place. Dozens of sprinklers arranged in a network around the castle mist out more water over the icicles, growing the castle’s 20-foot towers.
”All we are really doing is making suggestions of where we want the water to go next,” said Al Larsen, as he secured a three-foot icicle along a wall section.
It takes about 5 million gallons of water to build an ice castle and it is an investment that can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Christensen’s interest in building the ice castles began as a curiosity in his own front yard. He went to the larger scale about seven years ago, because he wanted the public to be able to interact with the castles, not just view it from afar.
Many of the ice castle artisans are in their first year, and Christensen is quick to jump in and help as he brings his vision to reality.
Jacob Dorrough, of Heber City, said he appreciates the guidance from Christensen, and that building the ice castle ranks as his favorite job to date, despite its challenges.
”The most challenging so far, I have to crisscross in the middle and they keep breaking,” Dorrough said as he attempted to build a wall that would become an arch.
Davis estimates about 70,000 people will visit the castle which includes a maze, a water fountain, waterfalls, a slot canyon, arches, and of course a big slide.
”[The big slide] is going to be so sick”, said Todd Ogilvie, of Heber City, a build artist working on the Midway castle.
But the Midway Ice Castle wouldn’t be the same without the slides.
”If we did away with the slides, I think we would be run out of town,” Christensen said.
The ice castle build team also uses garbage bags filled with air to block ice from growing in the walkways. As the open date draws closer, they will use hammer drills, rakes and other tools to prepare for the public. The ground will be made to the consistency of snow cone ice to offer more traction.
Rachel Kahler, events and marketing manager for Heber Valley Tourism and Economic Development, said the Soldier Hollow location adds to the winter wonderland feeling.
The ice castle begins to glow as the sky darkens. LED lights from inside also the structure give visitors a closer look at the patterns created by the ice.
”You really have to see it yourself and see the work,” Kahler said. “Truly a work of art.”
Kahler estimates about 80 percent of the visitors to the Midway Ice Castle will be Utahns.
Ice Castles created by Christensen and the company may also be found in Canada, Minnesota, New Hampshire, as well as a small structure this year in a store front in Manhattan, New York.
Christensen is hopeful the weather will remain on their side to keep the Midway Ice Castle open for several weeks through February.
Additional information, including ticket details, is available at http://icecastles.com/.
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