Knickerbocker Ice Festival

One of the benefits of living through one of the coldest winters in quite a while, is getting to see the Knickerbocker Ice Festival in its full glory. It was very cold (13F/-10C), so cold in fact Rockland Lake was frozen enough for people to skate on for the first time in 20 years! Undaunted, my sister and I bundled up and headed out to see the sights.

Believe it or not, Alex is smiling, lol.

Back in the days before refrigeration, Rockland Lake was famous for the clarity of its ice. This location is the former home of the Knickerbocker Ice Company, around which the town of Rockland Lake grew. The earliest icehouse was built in 1833 and by the year 1866 the small lake was producing 80,000 tons of ice each year. This company was very successful and even exported ice to India, Australia, and other international locations.

Of course, once the fridge became ubiquitous the ice industry melted away, with the last ice harvest taking place in 1924.

The old icehouses were insulated with sawdust. Sadly, while demolishing one in 1926, workers accidentally set a fire, destroying the vast majority of the small town of Rockland Lake. Only a few of the original houses remain in this forested area of our county. The lake and its surrounding land are now a public park.

Tools from the ice business were on display at the entrance.

This is a map of the old town of Rockland Lake, no longer in existence.

Now that the area is a park, no further development can occur in the area, hence the remaining houses are quite sought after. This house belongs to my cousins.

For me, the highlight of the festival were the ice sculptures. We saw one artist at work: he was in the early stages of his creation and was using a chain saw. After the big chunks of ice are removed, the more detailed work is performed with a chisel. I imagine this work must be stressful as a small slip can ruin the entire piece.

The sculpture this artist created is American Bison. The bison was designated as the ‘first animal of the US’ by President Obama in 2016. This beast is the largest mammal in North America, and while once on the brink of extinction due to overhunting, is now a leading example of cross-cultural conservation work.

The next sculpture was Bald Eagle, the national bird of the US. The Founding Fathers felt the eagle best represented the qualities of independence, strength and freedom. Others at the time (most notably Benjamin Franklin) wanted the turkey to be the national bird as it is indigenous to the original 13 colonies. The sculpture was created by the Shintaro Okamoto Studio and was particularly photogenic!

The last sculpture was this angel. As it was farther down the lake, there was a sign telling us to visit it!

This shows how people were walking as well as standing around and looking at the works.

I love how the ice sculptures look so different close up.

Also included on the grounds was a display honoring the women of the local Ramapough Lenape Nation. This tribe has inhabited the area for12,000 years and has recently regained 54 acres of ancestral, sacred land. Poignantly, the display was called ‘Still Here’.

If I was younger, thinner, and healthier, I would have joined those enjoying all that snow has to offer: igloo/fort building, skating, hockey and even ice-sailing! I had to settle for a lovely walk enjoying the beauty around me.

Obviously this sign is not being paid attention to!

Adults like to climb through igloo doors, too!

Campfires were a welcome respite from the cold. One of these was sponsored by the local cannabis store!

Most fascinating was watching this parasailer/skier (does anyone know the official name of this sport?). This person was incredibly skilled and was FLYING across the ice, from one end of the lake to another. Unfortunately, by the time I thought to video, he was too far away.

This poor little bird was trying to stay warm.

The day ended with Sophia, her boyfriend Drew, my sister Alex and I going out for my birthday dinner at Brassiere D. While the food was exquisite, the service was horrific and we won’t be going back there again. To name a few issues: we had to ask for everything from water to menus, the waiter brought the dessert menus while we were waiting for our entrees, when the entrees were brought out they were wrong, two tables finished their meals before we were served our entrée, and they forgot to put a candle on my dessert – even though they were told 3 times – finally bringing one as we were leaving. That aside, it was a lovely evening of good conversation and laughter.