Fun in the Snow!

Posted On February 12, 2014

Stephanie Kelley

Family Fun Day at the 2014 Winter Carnival was glorious! The weather was beautiful…. Oh, it was a little cold, but the sun shone brightly and a great time was had by all. All that snow we’ve accumulated got put to very good use by being piled high into a terrific sliding hill. Two chutes were smoothed out down the front, and this hill saw non-stop action during the entire duration of the event.
 
The concrete slab where the old rink used to stand was flooded and frozen for an outdoor rink, and was filled with skaters of all ages. A bonfire burned merrily to warm frosty toes, and ingredients were on hand for kids of all ages to toast S’Mores over the open fire.
 

Wes McLean and Rick Beaulieu were manning the barbecue grills while I was there, steadily turning out tasty burgers and hot dogs for anyone who felt peckish.
 

Wood sculptor Joel Palmer put on a demonstration of his carving technique throughout the event. Joel brought a large log to work with and over the course of 3 hours he used a variety of small, specialized chain saws, grinders and chisels to whittle the log into a large racoon clinging to the log. You can visit Joel’s site here to see more examples of his work.
 

As I got there, he was beginning to put the finishing touches on this nifty sculpture, giving the racoon’s face a mischievous grinning expression….just like these little woodland bandits sport in real life!
 

It was amazing to watch as a plain chunk of pine, like we see every day in these parts be transformed into a critter before our very eyes! Raffle tickets were available to purchase at $5 each for a chance to win this sculpture. It’ll make a wonderful backyard mascot for the lucky winner!
 

Liberal MLA candidate Andrew Harvey was on hand to meet folks and make fresh taffy on the snow, sponsored by Sugar Moon Cookhouse.
 

There was terrific excitement among the crowd when the horses and sleigh arrived…. Everyone was looking forward to a good, old fashioned horse drawn sleigh ride through the snow! It was another perfect way to play on this beautiful family fun day.
 

The small draft horses were named Max, Jim and Mike. They are all the breed called Haflinger, a very even tempered, sturdy, hardy and sure footed draft pony developed in Austria and Northern Italy during the late 19th century. Haflingers, also called Avelignese, are always chestnut in colour, and are used as saddle ponies as well as draft horses. They were soon hitched up and a sleigh full of kids took off around Veteran’s Field…a glorious way to end the day!