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All the United States New Hampshire Woodstock Ice Castles
AO Edited

Ice Castles

These towering spires and glowing walls are carefully crafted from hundreds of thousands of icicles.

Woodstock, New Hampshire

Added By
Danica
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The thick ice takes on a blue color.   Eric Kilby/CC BY-SA 2.0
The thick ice takes on a blue color.   Eric Kilby/CC BY-SA 2.0
The exit arch glows in the light.   Eric Kilby/CC BY-SA 2.0
  Eric Kilby/CC BY-SA 2.0
Stalagmites or stalactites?   Eric Kilby/CC BY-SA 2.0
Like icy sand castles   dcowan / Atlas Obscura User
Fire and Ice Cave   Eric Kilby/CC BY-SA 2.0
  Eric Kilby/CC BY-SA 2.0
The glow of the castles, the glow of the moon   dcowan / Atlas Obscura User
The castles are lit up at night   Eric Kilby/CC BY-SA 2.0
The thicker the ice, the deeper the color   Eric Kilby/CC BY-SA 2.0
  Missy Kay / Atlas Obscura User
  Eric Kilby/CC BY-SA 2.0
Cool ice and light displays   ktoste2 / Atlas Obscura User
Early December - growing ice   supercorzi / Atlas Obscura User
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About

In the White Mountains of northern New Hampshire, there are caves, tunnels, fountains, slides, and sculptures made of icicles. The dripping, organic shape makes them look like those dribble castles you make from wet sand at the beach, and at night they are lit up with an otherworldly glow. These towering human-made stalactites are known as the Ice Castles.

The Ice Castles project originated in Utah. It was started by Brent Christensen, who built an ice cave in his front yard to entertain his six kids. The structure was a hit, and has grown from a simple structure into a large-scale operation.

Each year, the creators go to wintry locations including New Hampshire, Colorado, and Wisconsin to start growing the castles. A series of drip pipes start the process of trickling out their icicles—the “seeds” of the castles. These icicles then form the basis of the structures, which are made entirely out of ice and snow.

Around 12,000 new icicles are formed and added every day. Team of artisans sculpt and coax the ice and snow into a system of tunnels and caves. By the time it's done, a single ice castle weighs more than 20 million pounds. Inside the castles, visitors will find ice-carved tunnels, fountains, and slides. At night, the castles glow in pastel hues thanks to LED lights inside the frozen walls.

Depending on the weather, the castle typically opens in January and stays up through March, when the icicles start to melt and all the pipes are packed up.

Related Tags

Ice Castles Winter Sculptures Ice

Know Before You Go

The Ice Castles open for the season in December. Check the website for admission prices and driving directions.

Community Contributors

Added By

dcowan

Edited By

cyccommute, supercorzi, MrCarl, Missy Kay...

  • cyccommute
  • supercorzi
  • MrCarl
  • Missy Kay
  • michellecassidy1
  • ktoste2

Published

December 26, 2016

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Sources
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln,_New_Hampshire
  • http://icecastles.com/
  • http://www.nhmagazine.com/Lincolns-Ice-Castle/
  • https://www.gohebervalley.com/MidwayIceCastleStory
  • https://www.google.com/maps/place/Ice+Castles/@44.0394364,-71.6794653,327m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m15!1m9!2m8!1sIce+Castles+!3m6!1sIce+Castles+!2sRailroad+St+%26+Connector+Rd,+Lincoln,+NH+03251!3s0x4cb481839423ab73:0xd7eac724abcca2f0!4m2!1d-71.6798375!2d44.0414708!3m4!1s0x4cb4818406bba5d5:0xe5b3ee411aca4927!8m2!3d44.0343819!4d-71.6988376
Ice Castles
24 Clark Farm Rd
Woodstock, New Hampshire, 03262
United States
44.034382, -71.698838
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Clark's Trading Post

Lincoln, New Hampshire

miles away

Indian Head

Lincoln, New Hampshire

miles away

The Basin

Lincoln, New Hampshire

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of New Hampshire

New Hampshire

United States

Places 110
Stories 6

Nearby Places

Clark's Trading Post

Lincoln, New Hampshire

miles away

Indian Head

Lincoln, New Hampshire

miles away

The Basin

Lincoln, New Hampshire

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of New Hampshire

New Hampshire

United States

Places 110
Stories 6

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