Saranac Lake Ice Castle - Part 2

I was working my way through the second story passages in the Saranac Lake ice castle (see also Part 1, posted yesterday):

All along the walls, in keeping with the prehistoric theme, were cave wall drawings. This was a Mammoth:

And some sort of deer with antlers. The cave drawings were 3D, made of sculpted snow. I must confess, though, that it looked to me like they had been colored with urine. Then again, I've been know to have a sick mind:

I reached the steps which led back down to the interior of the ice castle, and realized that these were the steps I'd passed previously:

There were two thrones, used by the Queen and King in the official opening ceremonies:

I had been disappointed that there was no Adirondack lean-to made of ice this year, but then I heard someone say it was just down this passageway:

Indeed it was. It just that the lean-to was inside the castle this year instead of separate, on the banks of Lake Flower:

I walked around the maze in the back of the castle. It's that lower wall you can see in this rear view. I thought it was more skillfully planned this year, and more interesting to walk through. But I'd seen all there was to see, so I walked toward the parking area:

There were no hot dogs or hamburgers for sale this year, but they did have kettle corn:

And a booth with what seemed to be Adirondack antiques:

I got back in my car and drove to a small park on a different part of Lake Flower, where students from the Adirondacks' Paul Smiths College were going to present logging/lumbering demonstrations:

I could see that they were set up for various competitions, but they hadn't yet begun:

But some students were there, all ready to go:

Just to get warmed up, the students began practicing their ax throwing skills:

The guy in the above photo missed, but I managed to get a shot of this guy's successful throw. This was the end of my visit to the Saranac Lake Winter Carnival. I got back in my car and began the 50 mile journey back home. A heavy, slippery snow began falling as I drove, and the roads became hazardous. I'm glad I didn't leave any later than I did:

Tupper Lake Woodsmen's Days - Part 3

I'd toured the chainsaw carving area and the venders' area, buying myself a bit to eat. It was almost time for the Chainsaw Carving Contest to begin, so I found a bleacher seat and waited for it to begin:

The lumberjack show would begin later, up on that stage:

The chainsaw carving competition began in earnest:

While up on the stage, preparations were being made for the lumberjack show:

The smoke and noise from the chainsaws were overwhelming, adding to the excitement. A woman next to me said that white pole on the left was greased, for a greased pole climbing competition later that afternoon:

But there wasn't a lot of action, so I had plenty of time to watch the preparations for the next show:

It was a grand day:

The woman on the left had two chainsaws which refused to start. The third chainsaw started but was obviously dull. I felt sorry for her and she quickly sent what I assumed to be a call for help on her cell phone:

But in the end, I couldn't stay any longer and had to leave. I exited the park, passing by Tupper Lake's permanent woodsman statue on the road:

As I walked to my car, I passed by these poles buried in the ground. I guessed that there would be a pole climbing competition, though I would not be there to see it: