Ice Fest

It’s February, it’s freezing, put that ice to good use

You know what they say: When life gives you ice, make ice sculptures. Go ice fishing. Drink cocoa. Et cetera. That’s what they do in these parts, at least, where prize-winning ice sculptor Stan Kolonko carves a series of sculptures at places between Long Lake and Raquette Lake at this two-day festival. (Kolonko, from Central New York, doesn’t leave the ice to Mother Nature – he grows it himself using “reverse osmosis filtration,” according to his website.) In past years, he’s carved a snowmobiler atop Long Lake’s logo, a shamrock outside the Shamrock Motel, Aladdin’s genie lamp at Ali Baba’s Liquor and Wine, and many more. 

At a glance
  • There’s more than ice - chili tastings, “taxidermy attire” contest, and music
  • Rather sit on the ice? Join the ice fishing derby on Lake Eaton
  • Kolonko is a Culinary Institute of America-trained chef – he also runs a catering business