MOA premieres event for first time

Running through a castle made entirely out of ice, watching her breath form before her, senior Tamy Covacevich said she finds playing in the Mall of America’s Ice Castle as one way to find entertainment in the otherwise boring winter.

“It’s really cool because you’re in a maze of ice, so it’s really fun playing hide and seek inside the ice,”  Covacevich said.

This maze of ice is a part of the widely recognized event that is now being featured in Minnesota. This winter, the MOA will be hosting the Ice Castle event. According to the co-owner Ryan Davis, this event has made previous appearances in Colorado and Utah.

“The first Ice Castle was created in (my business partner) Brent Christensen’s yard four years ago,” Davis said. “Since that time, Brent and I have built them two years ago in Midway, Utah, last year in Silverthorne, Col. and this year in Steamboat Springs, Col. and at MOA.”

The Ice Castle is made with icicles formed by 4 million gallons of water that are then fused together. Fifty large ice towers are joined together to create arches, tunnels, walls and caverns, and at night thousands of multi-colored LED lights illuminate the ice from within. The Ice Castle expands through a special sprinkler system that soaks the entire castle overnight with water, causing it to form a cave-like structure, according to Davis.

“It is made by hand by our growing icicles and (then we) harvest and transplant them one by one to ice structures that we create, then run water on them,” Davis said. “So it is a combination of cold temperatures, running water and hand placement of icicles.”

Covacevich said she discovered the Ice Castle through a website that highlights special events in Minnesota and decided it would be worth experiencing it for herself.

“I was looking for things to do on exploreminnesota.com and (the Ice Castle) came up,” Covacevich said. “I went to the castle because I had added it on my bucket list of things to do before winter ends in Minnesota.”

While Covacevich said she prefers to go to the Ice Castle with a large group of friends, freshman Graham Anderson said he might go with his family instead.

“I’d rather go with my family, since I think it’s more of a family event,” Anderson said. “It’d be really exciting, because I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Warm drinks and mini donuts are provided, and outdoor fire pits are made available. Because the maze lasts around 20-30 minutes and is outdoors, wearing warm clothing and dressing in layers is often encouraged, according to Covacevich.

“It was -20 degrees when I went, so we didn’t stay outside for very long,” she said. “If you decide to go, go when the weather’s warmer, since there’s no warming house.”

Junior Chadeya Byrd said she believes the Ice Castle will be a unique event for all ages, especially high school students.

“I think that as (they) get older, people lose (their) creativity. As a high schooler, it’s important to see the castle because it will remind you of what you can still create,” Byrd said.

Davis agreed and said the Ice Castle is very unique experience.

“You can’t see any formation like this that is as large and that is as naturally created that you can walk through, touch and experience up close,” Davis said. “You could travel and see glaciers and see something that is in some ways similar, or you could go to a frozen waterfall and see something similar in that way, but that is as close as you could get.”

MOA’s Ice Castle’s will remain open until Feb. 20, weather permitting. Tickets may be purchased at the Ice Castle gate or at any MOA guest service desk. The cost of admission for guests 13 and over is $10.