Fur Rondy - Snow Sculptures

One of my favorite parts of Fur Rondy is the snow sculptures. Really. I have competed in this contest twice in the past. I often think about doing it again, but then I force myself to remember being tired, achy and cold while I carved snow at midnight when it was 10 degrees out and I'd rather have been in a warm bed. The blocks of snow are each 8'x8'x8'. You are allowed to cut a section off and reposition it where ever you want, like on top if you want a higher sculpture.

This is the first Saturday of the event. They should all be complete and ready for judging next Saturday.

This was the most complete sculpture. It appears to be a native man in a kayak with a wave almost ready to overtake him.

I'm guessing a cougar or saber-tooth tiger?


This is a bear with a guitar? There are a couple musical instruments on the backside too.

This is one I sculpted about 12 years ago. It is my first attempt at snow sculpture and is the dog, cat, and bird (it's on the dog's paw) from the VCA (Veterinary Centers of America) logo. I got a "participation award" but so did everyone else!

This is my other VCA creation which I did the following year. I had help from some co-workers on this one, but the design is mine and most of the carving is too. The hardest part was those little itty bitty bird wings! I carved those several times only to have them break once they were set into place. The original design had much larger wings, we ended up with these little hand/wings out of desperation....the top of my totem is a cockatiel, then we have two cats, two dogs, a snake coiled around and then two rabbits at the bottom. Again, "participation award" but no big win!