Saranac Lake Winter Carnival, Part 1

I'd thought it would be impossible for me to stop at the Saranac Lake Winter Festival because of the crowds, but this year I drove through town early in the morning, before most folks were out and about. I parked, leaving the dogs in the car, and walked over to the ice castle. Leftover ice blocks, each about four feet long, were lying on the ground as if hoping someone would use them for something:

Because of the strong, early morning sunlight, I circled around the back of the ice castle to take photos without glare:

From behind, the "2013" sticking up above the castle looked more like "FiOS." Verizon would love the free advertising:

I saw an opening in the side wall of the castle and headed toward it:

And there, spread out before me like an ivory sculpture, was the 2013 Saranac Lake Winter Carnival throne and theme statues:

A radio station had set up a tent across the street, but the DJs were nowhere to be seen. I guess it was still too early:

Inside the castle walls I found a dolphin:

And a sea serpent:

I stood near the ice throne shivering while another tourist snapped my picture. That's Neptune and some fish on the left (my right), and an octopus on the right (my left):

Here's the octopus, right alongside the arm of the throne:

And Neptune with his fish. As you can tell, this year's theme was "Under The Sea." But I'll post more tomorrow: