Midway’s Ice Castles are taking shape, as low temperatures help crews grow icicles
(Shaun Terhune | Courtesy of Ice Castles) Icicles grow to be harvested for the Ice Castles installation in Midway, Utah. The 1-acre walk-through ice-and-light show is expected to open to the public in late December.
Freezing temperatures are usually an obstacle for construction — but not for the artisans building the Ice Castles installation in Midway.
“Mother Nature has been our friend this month,” said Ryan Davis, CEO of Ice Castles, the company behind the annual 1-acre walk-through ice-and-light display.
Below-freezing temperatures at night this week have made the ice-making easier, the company said in a statement.
(A.J. Mellor | courtesy of Ice Castles) An artisan places icicles in the framework of the Ice Castles installation in Midway, Utah. The one-acre walk-through ice-and-light show is expected to open to the public in late December.
(A.J. Mellor | courtesy of Ice Castles) An artisan works on the Ice Castles installation in Midway, Utah. The one-acre walk-through ice-and-light show is expected to open to the public in late December.
(A.J. Mellor | courtesy of Ice Castles) An artisan works on the Ice Castles installation in Midway, Utah. The one-acre walk-through ice-and-light show is expected to open to the public in late December.
(A.J. Mellor | courtesy of Ice Castles) An artisan works on the Ice Castles installation in Midway, Utah. The one-acre walk-through ice-and-light show is expected to open to the public in late December.
(Angela Napolitano | courtesy of Ice Castles) An artisan checks the growth of icicles for the Ice Castles installation in Midway, Utah. The one-acre walk-through ice-and-light show is expected to open to the public in late December.
(Shaun Terhune | courtesy of Ice Castles) Icicles grow to be harvested for the Ice Castles installation in Midway, Utah. The one-acre walk-through ice-and-light show is expected to open to the public in late December.
Crews are growing and harvesting up to 10,000 inches of icicles each day. Those icicles are then placed by hand and sprayed with water to form the framework for the castle’s walls, which can measure as high as 30 feet.
Crews will work some 4,000 staff-hours on this season’s castles, dripping water, shaping it into forms and placing color-changing LED lights. When opened in late December, the display will include slides, tunnels, fountains and crawl spaces — all in ice.
The Midway location is one of six Ice Castles operated by the Utah-based company in North America this winter. The others are in Lake Geneva, Wis.; Excelsior, Minn.; Lincoln, N.H.; Dillon, Colo.; and Edmonton, Alberta.
Get Utah Eats newsletter. Every Wednesday, we bring you what you need to know about Utah’s bar and restaurant scene.
Support free news for Utah
sltrib.com is now free to access — no subscription required. We made this decision because we believe access to trustworthy, independent news shouldn’t depend on what you can afford — especially as misinformation and AI-generated content continue to rise.
Free to read doesn’t mean free to produce. Our reporters show up every day to ask hard questions and hold powerful institutions to account. That work takes resources. As a nonprofit newsroom, we rely on support from people who believe it matters. Make a donation today to fund local news that serves Utah communities.
You can help us bring more local news to more communities today.