Tag Archives: ice sculptures

February 5, 2018

Ice Sculptures (Greenfield, MA)

By New England Nomad

Date Of Visit: February 3, 2017 (Carnival is usually held annually the first weekend of February)

Location: Main St, Greenfield, MA

Cost: Free

Parking: I found metered street parking to be plentiful on Main St.  There is also parking available on the side streets off Main St.

Handicapped Accessible: Yes

Dog Friendly: Yes

Tips:

  • the sculptures are lit up at night
  • there are several events and exhibits during the carnival (see the website below and the link to my post from last year’s carnival to see what other events take place at the carnival

Website: Greenfield Winter Carnival

Highlights: Ice sculptures from the Greenfield Winter Carnival

Well, we made it.  We’ve officially made it half way through the winter season.  Pause for collective groan. But, cheer up.  To celebrate this monumental milestone, Greenfield holds their annual winter carnival fair.  The fair includes a variety activities such as a parade of lights to kick off the carnival, face painting, a k9 keg pull a cardboard sled race among many other fun family friendly activities.  But, the highlight for many of the visitors to the Greenfield Winter Carnival are the ice sculptures.

Unfortunately, I was not able to attend the festivities this year.  But, I did post about it last year.

You can click here to view my blog post from last year’s winter carnival.

Unlike other ice sculpture exhibits where the sculptures are carved elsewhere and delivered, like the Salem’s So Sweet ice sculptures which are going to be on display this upcoming weekend, the ice sculptures at the Greenfield carnival are carved on sight on Main Street.  In fact, you may see some of the chunks of ice from the original blocks of ice in some of the photos below.

There were 11 total ice sculptures.  They are located on both sides of Main St.  We found 10 of them.  All of them are located on Main St. These sculptures are also lit up during the evening and some were already lit when we saw them during the afternoon.  The frigid and blustery conditions ensured the sculptures remained frozen despite the abundant sunshine.

The first sculpture on Main St (going from south to north) was created Sue O’Sullivan of Royalston, MA.

The second sculpture was created by Brendon Kellner of Cambridge, MA.  I think the figures are supposed to be dancing or about to embrace.  Or, they’re choking each other.  It is up to your particular interpretation today.  It may also depend on how your day is going, I suppose.

The next sculpture of a family of penguins (there is a little one in the middle of the two larger penguins) was created by Marc Cinamella of Palmerton, PA.

This sculpture was certainly one of the more popular ice sculptures and my favorite.  There were a group of photographers huddled around this sculpture.  Of course, waiting for the scene to clear out before I took my photo was less than pleasant given the conditions.  The intricate detail of the sculpture really is impressive.  The sculpture was carved by Mark Bosworth of Athol, MA.

Unfortunately, I did the shadow of this groundhog look a like sculpture.

This sculpture created by Chef Ben Pike and Franklin County Tech School Culinary students.

This snowflake is not any ordinary snowflake.  This icy snowflake was carved by hometown Greenfield citizen John Passiglia.

This howling wolf was created by Robert Markey of Ashfield, MA.  I’m not sure if it was done by design or if it was the way the sun was reflecting off the sculpture but I like how the wolf seems to disappear the father you look up on the sculpture in the second photo.

 

These humongous legs and feet were carved by Annaliese Bischoff from Leverett, MA.

David Barclay of Northampton, MA carved this dragon.  I love the scales on the chest of the sculpture.

The final sculpture we found (there was one more farther down the road we missed) of a certain Boston Bruins goalie was carved by Michael Legassey of Athol, MA.

In case you were wondering, yes there were many dogs attending the carnival festivities.

Andrew is a 3 year old Black Mouth Cur.

Bella, a 2 year old Shih Tzu was dressed for the cold temperatures.

Marcey, a rescue all the way from Chicago, is an 8 year old Shepherd mix.

Marcey’s sister, Zoie, a 5 year old Shih Tzu, showed off her talents.

 

18 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , | posted in dogs, Greenfield, ice sculptures, Massachusetts, New England, photographs, photography, photos, Uncategorized

February 17, 2017

Greenfield Arctic Blast Winterfest (Greenfield, MA)

By New England Nomad

Dates Of Event: February 3-5, 2017 (the first weekend in February each year) photos taken February 5

Location(s): All over the town of Greenfield, most events held at Beacon Field, 61 Beacon St, Greenfield, MA)

Cost: Free (there are small fees for some activites such as $5 to skate at the public outdoor ice rink)

Hours: 9 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Parking: limited parking can be found at the parking lot for Beacon Field.  Street parking is also available

Highlights: carnivsl hockey, sleigh rides, sled making contest, k9 keg pull, ice sculptures, family friendly activities (see web site below for more info)

Web Site: Greenfield Artic Blast Winterfest

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It’s that timee of the year again.  You know that time in between the “fun” part of winter and the coming spring.  The holidays have passed, the seemingly never-ending chill is still fast upon us, snow has stopped looking “pretty” and everyone is just eager to be able to go outside without layering so much that they look like the Michelin man.  So, to bring a little cheer to the frustrated masses, many cities and towns have organized “winterfests” or “winter carnivals” to get everyone out of their ruts and bring some cheer to the frozen masses.

Winterfests are not some new fangled celebrations.  In fact, this was Greenfield’s 95th winterfest.  I guess people got the doldrums back then, too.

The three day event (the first Friday, Saturday and Sunday in February) is a family friendly extravaganza.  Besides what I photographed dueing my visit Sunday, there are a bonfire, fireworks and a “family fun fest” event for kids to play and do a variety of events with other children and their parents.

The first thing I noticed, and I was looking for specifically, was the winter carnival hockey game between the Greenfield Sheriff’s Department and the Franklin County Firefighters.  The shortened rink and lack of goalies (they used boxes with holes in them to try to score goals), allowed for more action and more scoring chances.

There wasn’t much checking and not one fight (perhaps a first in a game between firefighters and police).  But, it was still entertaining.  I didn’t get a final score.  But, the Sheriff’s department (in the green jerseys) had a comfortable lead when I left to check out more of the winterfest.

In between breaks, some kids came out and practiced.  Future players for sure.

Most of the events during my visit took place at Beacon Field.  In some of the photos, you may notice the Poet’s Seat Tower which I posted about in May of last year.

The first thing I noticed was the sleigh rides being provided.

Some children took advantage of the hill at the park to do some sledding.

 

Some of the children brought their home made sleds to the park for a contest.  The sleds were judged but they didn’t take them on the hill perhaps due to the lack of a good snow covering.

The big event for most of us, though, was the K9 Keg Pull.  Dogs from a variety of breeds, sozes, shapes and physical prowess participated.  The size of the (empty) kegs and cans the dogs pulled were commensurate to their size.  There was a small registration fee ($25 I think) and all of the proceeds went to a animal shelter.

There were over 60 participants and they all did great.  The parents or guardians would usually run with their dog ot urge them on from the finish line.  Sometimees it seemed like the parents were having more fun with it than the dogs!

Bodie and Clarence (left to right) were twoo of the bigger competitors.

Not all of the dogs there were participating in the keg pulls

Sadie is a 2 year old Lab mix.

Duncan is a 14 week old mini-poodle.

There were also ice sculptures scattered around the town.  Of course, most of them had been damaged or destroyed by revelers.  I was able to photograph a couple of them.

Below are 2 videos from the keg pull

 

 

14 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , | posted in dogs, Greenfield, hockey, ice sculptures, ice skating, keg pull, Massachusetts, New England, photographs, photography, photos, Uncategorized, winterfest

February 13, 2017

Salem’s So Sweet (Salem, MA)

By New England Nomad

Dates Of Event: February 10-12, 2017 – usually the second weekend in February of each year (photos taken February 11)

Locations: Throughout the city of Salem

Hours:Visible 24 hours a day, until they melt

Cost: Free

Parking:Metered street parking is available and there are two big parking garages on New Liberty St and Congress St

The Downtown Garage (New Liberty St) costs $0.75 per hour.

The Waterfront Garage (Congress St) costs $0.25 per hour.

Both garages operate from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM Sunday through Wednesday and from 7:00 AM to 2:00 AM Thursday through Saturday.

Public Transportation: The MBTA’s Commuter Rail has a stop which deposits its passengers right at Washington St.  $15 for a round trip ticket from North Station (fares vary depending upon where you leave from and where you are going)

MBTA Commuter Rail

Handicapped Accessible: Yes, but some roads and sidewalks are not shoveled well

Dog Friendly: Yes

Highlights: 26 Ice Sculptures scattered throughout the city of Salem, many sculptures are lit up at night, some shops and businesses offer discounts as part of the event

Web Site: Salem’s So Sweet

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Proving once again they are not exclusively a Fall destination, Salem Massachusetts has outdone itself with a sweet display of ice sculptures.

Widely known for their Halloween festivities, Salem has been trying to make their city a year round attraction for some time.  In fact, this weekend’s festivities were the 15th annual “Salem’s So Sweet” event.

The Salem’s So Sweet festivities began Friday night, February 10, with a chocolate and wine tasting at Colonial Hall at Rockafellas ($30 tickets).  Yum!

The sculptures look so much better when they are illuminated.  This was only the second year they illuminated the sculptures (at 5 p.m.) and not all of them were illuminated during my visit.  I was able to photograph all of the sculptures (except for the Han Solo sculpture which was not completed when I visited) and I photographed almost half off the illuminated sculptures.

The illuminated sculptures look better the later and darker it gets.  So, I stayed as late as I could to capture the beauty of the lighting against the dark background.  I also thought the holiday lights (still up in February) and of course the snow gave the photos a nice touch.

Since we had some inclement weather and the roads were snowy and icy, I elected to take the train into Salem.  It took a little longer than driving (not taking into account any accidents that may occur) but the transfers can be a hassle, especially having to cross the street from Park Street to get the train at North Station.

In any event, the train ride is comfortable and there are some pretty views along the way.

The 26 ice sculptures (25 not including the missing sculpture) are scattered around Salem although many of them are located in about a mile or two mile radius (on Essex, Washington and Hawthorn streets/boulevard).  The trickiest part is trying to get to the sculptures that are located on the outskirts (such as Bridge St and Derby St.  A trolley was planned to transport visitors to each of the sculptures but due to the inclement weather that plan was scrapped this year.

It’s a great activity for families and I saw quite a few parents and children looking for each sculpture and excitedly checking the sculpture off their list.  The children especially seemed to like hunting for each one.  Each sculpture is clearly marked and pretty easy to find if you use the map.  The Visitor Center also has bigger maps than the one on the web site and they are of course very helpful.

While they are generally located near each other by number, sometimes it’s easier to map out your own route and find them on your own regardless of the number of the sculpture which is what I did. I have included photos of the sculptures lit up as well if I was able to see them illuminated.  They look so much better when they are lit up!

The first set of photographs were located at or near Lappin Park, near the Bewitched Statue.  The first ice sculpture is Globe, sponsored by The Journeymasters

Han Solo is the second sculpture on their list.  Unfortunately, Han’s Falcon got stuck in traffic so his sculpture was not available to be photographed.

As if you haven’t seen enough of them yet, the third sculpture is a snowflake sponsored by Laura Lanes Skin Care.

Some of the lighted sculptures changed colors like this one sponsored by Salem State University; Opening of Sophia Gordon Center.

Accross from Lappin Park, on Washington St, is the ice sculpture at Rockafella’s.  The Rockafella’s Ice Bar is like a frozen patio.  The cold weather and icy bar didn’t stop them from grilling and enjoying the fresh air. At least you didn’t have to worry about your beer getting warm.

Farther down Washington St is Champagne sponsored by Adriaatic Restaurant & Bar.

Sponsored by Creative Salem, Hawthorne Hotel and Retonica and located on Front St is the ice sculpture Reflections.  This one was cool because you could stand behind the sculpture and act as though you are the reflection.

Next to the Reflections sculpture is Cinderella’s Carriage, also on Front St,sponsored by  Maria’s Sweet Somethings.  From a distance, if you look at a certain angle, you can almost see some driving the carriage with a top hat on.  Go on, let me know if you see it too.

The next ice sculpture on the list is Fish sponsored by Koto and located on Washington St.

The next ice sculpture is Lobster Love located at Turner’s Seafood on Church St.  This sculpture also changes colors when illuminated.

This sculpture is located by the Salem Cinema.  It is called Salem Film Fest 2017.

On St Peter St at Bit Bar is Arcade.

The next group of sculptures are all located on the Essex Street Pedestrian Mall and one on Central St which is an alley off the pedestrian mall walkway.

Green Tara, sponsored by Coon’s Card and Gift Shop, Penelope’s Pet Boutique and Tibet’s Art & Healing.

On the other side of the walkway, very close to Tara is Bella The Goat sponsored by Bella Research Group.  Bella’s sculpture also changed colors while it was lit.

Off Essex St on Central St is the Steampunk Heart ice sculpture.

The next two sculptures are both back on Essex St Pedestrian Mall.  This ice sculpture is located in front of the Peabody Essex Museum.  It is called Red Stiletto with Honda Engine and it was sculpted by David Crow.

On the other side of the walkway in front of the Museum Mall Place and very close to the red stiletto sculpture is the Winnie The Pooh ice sculpture.  Winnie doesn’t look very happy!

The next sculptures are located on Hawthorne Blvd and Essex St.  Sweet Jane’s Sweet Savings is located on Hawthorne Blvd.

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Queen Of Hearts is located across the street on Essex St.

 

The following ice sculptures are located on or off Derby and New Derby St.  Mug is located at the Notch Brewery and Tap Room.

These two sculptures are located at the Waterfront Hotel and Regata Ice Bar.  t first glance, it looks like one sculpture but they are actually two separate sculptures.

Across the street from the Waterfron Hotel is the Rumson’s Rum ice sculpture.

Candy is located in front of the House Of The Seven Gables and, aptly, across the street from Ye Olde Pepper Company (America’s oldest candy company).  Yes, those are real candies.  No, I did not eat any of them.

From Derby St, you would have to backtrack towards N. Washington St, near the Salem Commons to find Ruby Slippers located at the Salem Witch Museum.  And, yes, I agree.

The next ice sculpture is a little bit of a walk.  Bakery is located in the parking lot of Coffee Time Bake Shop (96 Bridge St).  In fact, you may want to drive to this sculpture.

And, yes, of course, there were lots of dogs in Salem checking out the sculptures.

Emmett is a 4 year old Cockapoo.  Look at those cute shoes!

Mattie is 7 years old.  She was bundled up for the cold weather!  She is also very well trained.

All of the dogs in Salem were prepared for the cold weather.  These dogs had some beautiful sweaters on keeping them both warm and fashionable.

I am not sure how long the sculptures are being displayed.  Between our erratic weather and hooligans who seem to get their kicks smashing ice art, I would suggest going soon to check them out before they’re gone!

Below is a video of the Bella The Goat ice sculpture changes colors.

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19 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , | posted in Massachusetts, New England, photographs, photography, photos, Salem, sculptures, Uncategorized