McCall Ice Carving Festival Warms the Spirit

McCall, Idaho celebrates winter with an ice carnival - unless there is a pandemic. This year, 2022, the event is back in full swing and worth your time. If you are new to Idaho, you may wish to explore this opportunity. For travelers looking for new experiences, mark this on your calendar for the future and plan a visit to Idaho. And for people who are currently homebound, adverse to driving in the snow or simply like to live vicariously, read on to enjoy some of what McCall has to offer.

Afflicted with cabin fever, our spirits required new scenery but since we do not enjoy crowds, we timed our adventure the day prior to the opening ceremonies, which will include fireworks. We drove around town stopping at each sculpture to admire the art.

The restaurant 6 Three 4 captured our vote for most intricate and eye catching. Behind this large entry sign sits a huge block of ice carved into coral and adorned with several species of fish.

A visitor is required to walk around the piece to appreciate the different layers and images presented. In front of the coral a swimmer is playfully resting on a turtle and in the back of the area is another turtle.

Some of the sculptures were not complete as we did visit a day early, but this added to the experience allowing us to see the different stages of development.

We even had the opportunity to talk with one of the artists. When I asked how many hours were devoted to his creation, he said he doesn't count hours and then provided the information in days, 5 days of toil.

Event guide: 2022 McCall Winter Carnival

We found some of the sculptures camouflaged in the deep, piles of snow throughout the town so strongly suggest reading about the offering and using a map to discover all the festival has to offer.

Visit the McCall Chamber of Commerce for valuable information

Every year we visit, Sharlie makes an appearance as she did this year. For the full flavor of the event, reading about the history of this famous lake monster can be found in the article below.

Who is 'Sharlie'? A brief history of the Payette Lake monster

Suggestions

• Explore for interactive ice sculptures. On the back side of this one is carved stairs for children to use to climb to the top and then an ice slide returns them to the bottom.
• Plan your trip to coincide with events that interest you. If my old bones get off the couch to venture into the cold, I would like to watch the dog sled challenge, Snow bike, Snowmobile and UTV races, and kids would love the snowman building contest. If you dislike crowds, plan to attend in the middle of the week.
• Dress in warm clothes. The day we attended, we woke to -7 degrees and during the day the temperatures reached a balmy 17. Perfect for visitors to an ice carnival.
• Take a sled. There is a sled hill near the lake. Break up the day by spending time enjoying the excitement of sliding down a snow hill.
• Wear comfortable and whether appropriate footwear. McCall is a small mountain town with minimal parking. To get the full experience: music, food, and events, plan to walk. We found pulling small children in a sled is a great way to get from point A to point B.
• Watch for wildlife. On our way we witnessed a large herd of Elk in a pasture beside the road. Deer can typically be seen sleeping in yards, walking the streets, and grazing on shrubs. Keep your eyes open and other creatures will appear.

• Move slowly and observe. Many of the sculptures display intricate details that will increase your pleasure if you look closely. These are truly works of art.

This year there are 22 sculptures included on the map and the events last a week. I encourage Idaho resident who need to see the sun to rise above the inversion and visit The McCall Winter Ice Carnival.

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