Ice Castles back up in Lake Geneva after warm January

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - The Ice Castles in Lake Geneva are going back up after warmer than typical temps in January melted the work first done by crews.

“It’s been a tremendous rise and fall of the castle literally,” said Ice Castles assistant manager Colleen Anderson.

The castles were supposed to open the final weekend of January, before the weather melted down the initial fast progress made by crews building the structures.

“Yeah, it’s a bummer when it melts out, and we see all of our progress go away, but you know it always motivates us every year too; we look at it as a challenge,” said build manager Alberto Huerta.

The castles use anywhere between seven to 13 million gallons of water in ice, and now it is a race to get back on track and open by the first Saturday in February. It required not only a tremendous effort but, Anderson adds, a historic one.

“This year, it’s projected to be like, I think, 15 or 16 days which will be the fastest in the company history of building like any ice castle,” said Anderson. “You know, it is just having that determination, morale gets kind of low at points when you see like the ice castle gets so big and then it drops down, and it’s just that drive, ‘We’re going to get this thing done. ‘”

The Ice Castles are scheduled to stay open through February or as long as the weather allows.

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