A
snow fort or
snow castle is a usually open-topped temporary structure made of
snowSnow is a type of precipitation in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by external pressure. Snowflakes...
walls that is used for recreational purposes. Snow forts are generally built by children as a playground game or winter
pastimeA hobby is an activity or interest that is undertaken for pleasure or relaxation in one's spare time.- Etymology :A hobby horse is a wooden or wickerwork toy made to be ridden just like a real horse...
and are used as defensive structures in
snowball fightA snowball fight is a physical game in which snowballs are thrown with the intention of hitting somebody else. The game is similar to dodgeball in its major factors, though typically less organized...
s. They are also built and used for
make-believe gamesChildren's games that involve role play generally have no rules except to stay in character, and require no specific props. They are normally restricted to young, pre-pubescent children, and aside from their straightforward purpose of fun can sometimes also serve the purpose of allowing children...
such as "house" or "store". Along with the
snowmanA snowman is an anthropomorphic snow sculpture of a human.-Construction:Packing snow is formed when regular powder snow comes near its melting point and becomes moist and compactible. This allows for the construction of large balls of snow by simply rolling a ball of snow until it grows the...
, it is one of the two structures commonly built by children out of snow.
Snow structures made for sleeping are called
igloosAn igloo , or snowhouse, is a type of shelter built out of snow, originally built by the Inuit...
when made from snow blocks and
quinzheesA quinzhee or quinzee is a shelter made by hollowing out a pile of settled snow. This is in contrast to an igloo, which is made from blocks of snow...
when made by hollowing out a pile of snow.
Snow forts consist of walls of piled and compacted snow.
A
snow fort or
snow castle is a usually open-topped temporary structure made of
snowSnow is a type of precipitation in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by external pressure. Snowflakes...
walls that is used for recreational purposes. Snow forts are generally built by children as a playground game or winter
pastimeA hobby is an activity or interest that is undertaken for pleasure or relaxation in one's spare time.- Etymology :A hobby horse is a wooden or wickerwork toy made to be ridden just like a real horse...
and are used as defensive structures in
snowball fightA snowball fight is a physical game in which snowballs are thrown with the intention of hitting somebody else. The game is similar to dodgeball in its major factors, though typically less organized...
s. They are also built and used for
make-believe gamesChildren's games that involve role play generally have no rules except to stay in character, and require no specific props. They are normally restricted to young, pre-pubescent children, and aside from their straightforward purpose of fun can sometimes also serve the purpose of allowing children...
such as "house" or "store". Along with the
snowmanA snowman is an anthropomorphic snow sculpture of a human.-Construction:Packing snow is formed when regular powder snow comes near its melting point and becomes moist and compactible. This allows for the construction of large balls of snow by simply rolling a ball of snow until it grows the...
, it is one of the two structures commonly built by children out of snow.
Snow structures made for sleeping are called
igloosAn igloo , or snowhouse, is a type of shelter built out of snow, originally built by the Inuit...
when made from snow blocks and
quinzheesA quinzhee or quinzee is a shelter made by hollowing out a pile of settled snow. This is in contrast to an igloo, which is made from blocks of snow...
when made by hollowing out a pile of snow.
Variations
Snow forts consist of walls of piled and compacted snow. They may be "open" or "closed", that is, a person in the snow fort may be completely surrounded by the walls on all sides, there may be a "door", or the person may be completely exposed except in one direction. The last variation is used for snowball fights where opponents have forts facing each other and attack exclusively from their own fort. Existing structures such as the walls or concave corners of a building can be used as part of the snow fort, allowing for faster and easier construction. A snow fort can also be a tunneled-out burrow built in a large snow drift.
Snow forts are usually at least knee-height and one-roomed. Forts built for snowball fights may be higher, and ones built for "house" may have lower walls and multiple rooms. When used for snowball fights, snow forts often have sections where the wall is lower, through which the occupants throw snowballs.
Finland
The SnowCastle of Kemi is the biggest snow castle in the world, built in
KemiKemi is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located very near of the city of Tornio. It was founded in 1869 by royal decree, because of its proximity to a deep water harbour.Kemi is located in the province of Lapland. The town has a population of...
in 1996 Since then the world's largest snow castle has been rebuilt annually in Kemi. The area has varied from 13,000 to over 20,000 square meters. Highest towers have been over 20 meters high and longest walls over 1,000 meters long. Sometimes there have been three-storey buildings there. The SnowRestaurant has ice tables and seats covered with
reindeerThe reindeer , also known as the caribou when wild in North America, is an Arctic and Subarctic-dwelling deer, widespread and numerous across the Arctic and Subarctic.- Distribution and habitat :...
fur. The
ecumenicalЁcumenism or Œcumenism now mainly refers to initiatives aimed at greater religious unity or cooperation....
SnowChapel decorated with ice sculptures has seen numerous weddings with some couples coming from Japan and Hong Kong. There is also a SnowHotel in the snow castle. The hotel has double rooms and a honeymoon suite with ice decorations.
There are also ice decorations in Lainio Snow Hotel (near Ylläs and
Levi, FinlandLevi is one of the largest ski resorts in Finnish Lapland. The resort is located in Kittilä municipality and is served by Kittilä Airport and Kolari train station....
).
Canada
In
Kingston, OntarioKingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario, where Lake Ontario runs into the St. Lawrence River and the Thousand Islands begin.Kingston is the county seat of Frontenac County...
, the annual FebFest
snow sculptureSnow sculpture is a sculpture form comparable to sand sculpture or ice sculpture in that most of it is now practiced outdoors, and often in full view of spectators, thus giving it kinship to performance art in the eyes of some. The materials and the tools differ widely, but often include hand...
competition in Confederation Park in features snow forts by
Royal Military College of CanadaThe Royal Military College of Canada , is the military academy of the Canadian Forces, and is a degree-granting university. RMC is the only federal institution in Canada with degree granting powers. Located on Point Frederick, a 41-hectare peninsula in Kingston, Ontario, the college is a blend of...
and Queens University. The snow fort must not only be pleasing to look at but also safe for children to play on. In 2008,
Royal Military College of CanadaThe Royal Military College of Canada , is the military academy of the Canadian Forces, and is a degree-granting university. RMC is the only federal institution in Canada with degree granting powers. Located on Point Frederick, a 41-hectare peninsula in Kingston, Ontario, the college is a blend of...
's snow fort was modelled after the MacKenzie Building in the
Second EmpireIn the United States, the Second Empire style usually combined a rectangular tower, or similar element, with a steep, but short, mansard roof; the roof being the most noteworthy link to the style’s French roots. This tower element could be of equal height as the highest floor, or could exceed the...
style with a
Mansard roofA Mansard or mansard roof in architecture refers to a style of hip roof characterized by two slopes on each of its four sides with the lower slope being much steeper, almost a vertical wall, while the upper slope, usually not visible from the ground, is pitched at the minimum needed to shed water...
, and a central tower incorporating a working clock, flanked by projecting end towers and a slide. Both teams worked through the night, filling rectangular
recyclingRecycling involves processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower...
bins with snow.
In popular culture
The BackyardigansThe Backyardigans is a 3-D CGI-animated children's TV series, created by Janice Burgess. It is a co production of Nick Jr. and the Canadian animation studio Nelvana. Debuting on November 22, 2004, it originally had 20 episodes. It aired on CBS from October 2004 until September 2006. Music for the...
episode "The Snow Fort" has Mounties defending an elaborate version of such a fort while members of the
ski patrolA ski patrol is an organization that provides first aid and rescue services to skiers and participants of other snow sports, either at a ski area or in a back country setting. Patrollers are trained with the first aid necessary to stabilize and transport casualties to advanced care, often as...
try to get in.
The Dog Who Stopped the WarThe Dog Who Stopped the War, or in original Quebec French La guerre des tuques, is a French Canadian comedy/drama film from Quebec, directed by André Mélançon...
(1984) is a cult movie and box-office hit in
QuébecQuebec is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking identity and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. Half of this movie revolves around a very elaborate snow fort.
External links