Oconomowoc warms up the chilly January weather with its 9th annual Chili Fest on Saturday, January 27th! Ice sculptures and carvings along the downtown streets, ice and pond hockey on Fowler Lake, open family skating, a beer tent, and of course plenty of chili tastings.
Chili tastings are hosted by downtown businesses and local fundraising organizations with proceeds going to local charity. As you stroll downtown and stop in shops you can check out professional ice carvers who dot the downtown streets chiseling frozen blocks into works of art. A DJ and beer tent – which will also offer burgers and hot cocoa – are set up on the lake near the hockey tournament. A family skating rink is groomed nearby and an ice fishing clinic is also planned for the young anglers. It should be a fairly mild Saturday, so note ice conditions if you plan on skating.
While you stroll Wisconsin Avenue, check out a great burger at Crafty Cow, browse boutique shops, have a beer at Lakerz Sports Bar & Grill, and get a gander at the marker by City Hall commemorating the former location of the Strand Theatre, notable for being the place where the classic film The Wizard of Oz first premiered to audiences. Plenty of fun, food, skating, history, and more in this incredibly charming town at the western end of Waukesha County’s Lake Country.
Oconomowoc is where Highways 16 and 67 meet, just north of I-94’s Exit 282. The downtown is wedged between Lac La Belle and Fowler Lake and stroll along Wisconsin Avenue and Main Street reveals plenty of great shops, beautiful architecture, restaurants, historic markers, a dam, and much more. And of course on Saturday the 27th during Chili Fest, plenty of skating and chili!
Chili Fest Address:
Downtown Oconomowoc
133 E. Wisconsin Avenue (Highways 16 & 67, skipping the bypass)
Oconomowoc, WI 53066
(262) 567-5755 Website
Start:
January 27, 2018 9:00 am
End:
January 27, 2018 5:00 pm
Venue:
Downtown Oconomowoc
Phone:
262-567-5755
Address:
133 E. Wisconsin Avenue, Oconomowoc, WI, 53066, United States
The annual Jack Frost Festival let everyone enjoy a great family festival, held on the Yellow River Flowage in Spooner along U.S. 63 (near Tony’s, we’ve been there several times!). Check out hockey tournaments, open skating, a snowshoe jaunt, fat bike demos, turkey bowling, ribs and chili contests, minnow races, toilet paper toss, bonfire and s’mores bar, a regular bar in the form of Tony’s Riverside, other family events, and more. It takes place all day Saturday the 13th on the Yellow River Flowage in Spooner along U.S. 63, right in the heart of Washburn County.
You can also reach Spooner via Highway 70 or the U.S. 53 freeway. While traveling north on 53 you can angle over on Highway 253 (the old U.S. 53 prior to 1988), which brings you right into town and to the event!
Jack Frost Festival Address:
Spooner City Park
Spooner, WI 54801
(715) 635-2168 Website
Start:
January 13, 2018 8:00 am
End:
January 13, 2018 4:00 pm
Venue:
Yellow River Flowage
Phone:
715-635-2168
Address:
524 S. River Street, Spooner, WI, 54801, United States
Ready for some outdoor mid-January fun in the North Woods? The Arctic Warrior Race is back for the second year in St. Germain, a center of winter playground fun in Vilas County and the North Woods. The event’s full name, by the way, is the 2nd Annual Arctic Warrior Snowshoe and Winter Obstacle Course Race.
The Arctic Warrior 1k Kids and 5k or 10k Snowshoe Race will wind you through the beautiful trails in St. Germain and alongside the obstacle course race. The Arctic Warrior 5k or 10k Obstacle Course Race will wind around Little St. Germain Lake and through trails of towering pines that will challenge you though variety of adventure obstacles including: a stuck in snow tire shuffle, arctic stair challenge, frozen switchback climb, snowy tundra tunnel crawl and a frozen tire bike race to name a few.
The Obstacle Course Challenge is a Team event so bring your friends along (team sizes can range in size from 2-6). The Most Spirited Arctic Warrior Team will be recognized at 3:30 at the Wild Bear Grill & Pub. Proceeds from the Race will be shared with the St. Germain Non-Motorized Trail System Fund. Discover Wisconsin will be there filming, and co-host Eric Paulsen, who is also the “Head Tourer” for State Trunk Tour, will check out the action and may be talked into seeing how fast he can go on snowshoes (spoiler alert: not very.)
St. Germain holds the Snowmobile Hall of Fame, which is along Highway 70. Just up Highway 155 closer to Sayner, the Vilas County Museum holds the first true snowmobile, which was patented by Carl Eliason in 1924. This area definitely knows their winter sports and how to get around in the snow!
Imagine an Ice Castle Wonderland in the already wondrous Wisconsin Dells, right next to the upside-down White House on the grounds as the World’s Largest Wooden Trojan Horse on the grounds of Mt Olympus Resort.
Well, you don’t need to imagine. Six days a week from January 12th through mid-March (weather permitting), a massive ice castle compound will be in that very spot, ready for exploration by the whole family. The artistic project began in October on the grounds of Mount Olympus Resort, one of five projects in North America by Ice Castles LLC, a Utah-based company with similar projects in New Hampshire, Minnesota, Utah, and Alberta, Canada. One of the most unique and amazing facts about the Ice Castles is that they are literally built by hand. They grow more than 5,000 icicles each day that we harvest and sculpt together.
Photo courtesy of Facebook.com/TheIceCastles
In the Dells, the Ice Castle Wonderland features two 50-foot-long slides, a 35-foot tower, a fountain, and a domed room with a waterfall. You’ll also find tunnels, towers, trails, and even thrones lined with crushed ice and snow, all of which feature embedded light shows.
Some Tips (from their website) for a Great Experience:
Wear Boots. The walking surface inside of the Ice Castles is made of crushed ice. Walking in boots is definitely best.
Buy Tickets Before You Arrive. When you buy a ticket, you buy an arrival time. We ask that you arrive within your 30 minute time window. Once you are inside the castle you can stay as long as you’d like!
Save some trees. When you buy your tickets online we’ll send you an email with a unique QR code, so there’s no need to print your tickets. We can scan the code right from your phone!
Photos are encouraged (and they want to see them! #icecastles) but they ask that you please leave photography equipment such as tripods and lights at home. For information about commercial or specialized photo sessions please email them at info@icecastles.com.
It is HIGHLY recommended to bring a small sled to pull children instead of a stroller. It is extremely difficult to push the stroller through the castle (think of it like trying to push a stroller through a sandy beach).
To reach Wisconsin Dells, just hit I-90/94, U.S. 12, or Highways 13, 16, or 23. And hope the weather stays cold!
Hours & Tickets:
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday: 3pm – 9pm (closed Tuesday)
Online Tickets: $9.95 ages 12 and up, $6.95 ages 4-11
Tickets at the Door: $15 ages 12 and up, $10 ages 4-11 Child (4-11): $10
Friday, 3pm – 10pm
Saturday, noon – 10pm
Sunday, noon – 9pm
Online Tickets: $12.95 ages 12 and up, $8.95 ages 4-11
Tickets at the Door: $18 ages 12 and up, $10 ages 4-11 Child (4-11): $12
Start:
January 12, 2017
End:
March 18, 2017
Venue:
Mt Olympus Resort
Phone:
800-800-4997
Address:
1701 Wisconsin Dells Parkway, Wisconsin Dells, WI, 53965, United States
The third annual Snow Daze Festival in Library Park will celebrate winter with an ice carving demonstration and display of ice sculptures. More than 40 ice sculptures will decorate Library Park and sidewalks throughout downtown Kenosha.
Featuring:
• An ice carving demonstration by Art Below Zero of Franksville.
• Cheer on your favorite mascot as they compete in fun Mascot Madness games in the park at 1 p.m. The Kenosha Kingfish baseball team, the Dinosaur Discovery Museum, Carthage College and Capt. Mike’s and Uncle Mike’s restaurants will be represented.
• The Children’s Room at Simmons Library offers a chance to warm up, with craft supplies available from 12-3 p.m. for children to create winter projects including paper snowflakes, snowman puppets and suncatchers.
• Downtown Ambassadors stationed in Library Park will have maps showing the locations of the ice sculptures downtown, and information on special entertainment and sales at downtown businesses as part of the Second Saturday celebration.
Calendar of Events
Calendar of Events › Winter Festival
January 27, 2018
Chili Fest
Oconomowoc warms up the chilly January weather with its 9th annual Chili Fest on Saturday, January 27th! Ice sculptures and carvings along the downtown streets, ice and pond hockey on Fowler Lake, open family skating, a beer tent, and of course plenty of chili tastings.
Chili tastings are hosted by downtown businesses and local fundraising organizations with proceeds going to local charity. As you stroll downtown and stop in shops you can check out professional ice carvers who dot the downtown streets chiseling frozen blocks into works of art. A DJ and beer tent – which will also offer burgers and hot cocoa – are set up on the lake near the hockey tournament. A family skating rink is groomed nearby and an ice fishing clinic is also planned for the young anglers. It should be a fairly mild Saturday, so note ice conditions if you plan on skating.
While you stroll Wisconsin Avenue, check out a great burger at Crafty Cow, browse boutique shops, have a beer at Lakerz Sports Bar & Grill, and get a gander at the marker by City Hall commemorating the former location of the Strand Theatre, notable for being the place where the classic film The Wizard of Oz first premiered to audiences. Plenty of fun, food, skating, history, and more in this incredibly charming town at the western end of Waukesha County’s Lake Country.
Oconomowoc is where Highways 16 and 67 meet, just north of I-94’s Exit 282. The downtown is wedged between Lac La Belle and Fowler Lake and stroll along Wisconsin Avenue and Main Street reveals plenty of great shops, beautiful architecture, restaurants, historic markers, a dam, and much more. And of course on Saturday the 27th during Chili Fest, plenty of skating and chili!
Chili Fest Address:
Downtown Oconomowoc
133 E. Wisconsin Avenue (Highways 16 & 67, skipping the bypass)
Oconomowoc, WI 53066
(262) 567-5755
Website
January 13, 2018
Jack Frost Festival
The annual Jack Frost Festival let everyone enjoy a great family festival, held on the Yellow River Flowage in Spooner along U.S. 63 (near Tony’s, we’ve been there several times!). Check out hockey tournaments, open skating, a snowshoe jaunt, fat bike demos, turkey bowling, ribs and chili contests, minnow races, toilet paper toss, bonfire and s’mores bar, a regular bar in the form of Tony’s Riverside, other family events, and more. It takes place all day Saturday the 13th on the Yellow River Flowage in Spooner along U.S. 63, right in the heart of Washburn County.
You can also reach Spooner via Highway 70 or the U.S. 53 freeway. While traveling north on 53 you can angle over on Highway 253 (the old U.S. 53 prior to 1988), which brings you right into town and to the event!
Jack Frost Festival Address:
Spooner City Park
Spooner, WI 54801
(715) 635-2168
Website
Arctic Warrior Race, St. Germain
Ready for some outdoor mid-January fun in the North Woods? The Arctic Warrior Race is back for the second year in St. Germain, a center of winter playground fun in Vilas County and the North Woods. The event’s full name, by the way, is the 2nd Annual Arctic Warrior Snowshoe and Winter Obstacle Course Race.
The Arctic Warrior 1k Kids and 5k or 10k Snowshoe Race will wind you through the beautiful trails in St. Germain and alongside the obstacle course race. The Arctic Warrior 5k or 10k Obstacle Course Race will wind around Little St. Germain Lake and through trails of towering pines that will challenge you though variety of adventure obstacles including: a stuck in snow tire shuffle, arctic stair challenge, frozen switchback climb, snowy tundra tunnel crawl and a frozen tire bike race to name a few.
The Obstacle Course Challenge is a Team event so bring your friends along (team sizes can range in size from 2-6). The Most Spirited Arctic Warrior Team will be recognized at 3:30 at the Wild Bear Grill & Pub. Proceeds from the Race will be shared with the St. Germain Non-Motorized Trail System Fund. Discover Wisconsin will be there filming, and co-host Eric Paulsen, who is also the “Head Tourer” for State Trunk Tour, will check out the action and may be talked into seeing how fast he can go on snowshoes (spoiler alert: not very.)
St. Germain holds the Snowmobile Hall of Fame, which is along Highway 70. Just up Highway 155 closer to Sayner, the Vilas County Museum holds the first true snowmobile, which was patented by Carl Eliason in 1924. This area definitely knows their winter sports and how to get around in the snow!
Arctic Warrior Race Address/HQ:
Wild Bear Grill Pub
1330 Halberstadt Road
St. Germain, WI 54558
(715) 479-5778
Website
January 12, 2017 – March 18, 2017
Ice Castle Wonderland in Wisconsin Dells
Imagine an Ice Castle Wonderland in the already wondrous Wisconsin Dells, right next to the upside-down White House on the grounds as the World’s Largest Wooden Trojan Horse on the grounds of Mt Olympus Resort.
Well, you don’t need to imagine. Six days a week from January 12th through mid-March (weather permitting), a massive ice castle compound will be in that very spot, ready for exploration by the whole family. The artistic project began in October on the grounds of Mount Olympus Resort, one of five projects in North America by Ice Castles LLC, a Utah-based company with similar projects in New Hampshire, Minnesota, Utah, and Alberta, Canada. One of the most unique and amazing facts about the Ice Castles is that they are literally built by hand. They grow more than 5,000 icicles each day that we harvest and sculpt together.
In the Dells, the Ice Castle Wonderland features two 50-foot-long slides, a 35-foot tower, a fountain, and a domed room with a waterfall. You’ll also find tunnels, towers, trails, and even thrones lined with crushed ice and snow, all of which feature embedded light shows.
Some Tips (from their website) for a Great Experience:
To reach Wisconsin Dells, just hit I-90/94, U.S. 12, or Highways 13, 16, or 23. And hope the weather stays cold!
Hours & Tickets:
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday: 3pm – 9pm (closed Tuesday)
Online Tickets: $9.95 ages 12 and up, $6.95 ages 4-11
Tickets at the Door: $15 ages 12 and up, $10 ages 4-11 Child (4-11): $10
Friday, 3pm – 10pm
Saturday, noon – 10pm
Sunday, noon – 9pm
Online Tickets: $12.95 ages 12 and up, $8.95 ages 4-11
Tickets at the Door: $18 ages 12 and up, $10 ages 4-11 Child (4-11): $12
February 13, 2016
Snow Daze, Kenosha
The third annual Snow Daze Festival in Library Park will celebrate winter with an ice carving demonstration and display of ice sculptures. More than 40 ice sculptures will decorate Library Park and sidewalks throughout downtown Kenosha.
Featuring:
• An ice carving demonstration by Art Below Zero of Franksville.
• Cheer on your favorite mascot as they compete in fun Mascot Madness games in the park at 1 p.m. The Kenosha Kingfish baseball team, the Dinosaur Discovery Museum, Carthage College and Capt. Mike’s and Uncle Mike’s restaurants will be represented.
• The Children’s Room at Simmons Library offers a chance to warm up, with craft supplies available from 12-3 p.m. for children to create winter projects including paper snowflakes, snowman puppets and suncatchers.
• Downtown Ambassadors stationed in Library Park will have maps showing the locations of the ice sculptures downtown, and information on special entertainment and sales at downtown businesses as part of the Second Saturday celebration.
View the Downtown Ice Sculpture Tour map here. The ice sculptures are expected to last up to two weeks, depending on the weather.
Get updates and more details on the Snow Daze website!
You can access downtown Kenosha via Highways 32, 50, or 158. I-41/94 and Highway 31 also get you close.