‘Opportunity for winter tourism’: Snow lodge for events being built in Flin Flon

Northern Manitoba residents are working to build a lodge out of ice and snow in Flin Flon.

A large lodge constructed entirely of snow and ice is being built in Flin Flon, with the hope of supporting winter tourism in the region.

Construction of the lodge—a 56-foot-long arc with ice walls—began approximately two weeks ago inside a Flin Flon campground. It is expected to open early in the new year.

Winnipeg-based architect Peter Hargraves, a lead builder with the project, said the venue will have a wide array of possible uses, ranging from hosting dinners, bands and even wedding socials.

“It’s just a chance for the community to engage in the structure, to understand what it is, and to realize that it’s full of great potential,” Hargraves said. “But it requires inputs from creative and engaged people within the community.

Hargraves said inspiration for the snow lodge, which is being built with the support of the City of Flin Flon, came after he helped build an ice hotel in Sweden.

“We really got to see how it happens on a big scale. They have an international brand, and they’re really the granddaddy or grandmother of ice hotels. And we learned everything we could from that,” Hargraves said.

The architect said snow is blown onto a large steel arch at high velocity, which is crucial to ensuring the structure’s integrity. Once complete, the steel form is then removed, leaving behind only a snow arch. Hargraves said the underside of the arch is 14 feet tall.

To gather enough snow, Hargraves said a company has been hired to manufacture snow that spans about half the size of a football field and is 10 feet deep.

Ice blocks are also being carved from a nearby pond to form the walls, Hargraves said.

“What happens over the course of the winter is the snow settles, so the structure will settle about six inches, but it settles consistently down, so where the ice walls are, they will support the ends,” he said.

Hargraves said the walls also act as a wind block and noted the temperature inside the lodge—which is equipped with doors—will always remain around -1 C or -2 C.

Crystal Kolt, the City of Flin Flon’s director of culture and community initiatives, said funding for the project was put up by the city, the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce, and other funders.

She said the snow lodge will be accompanied by a nearby fire pit, washrooms, insulated prospector tents, and a skating rink on the pond.

“It’s really about pulling the community together,” Hargraves said. “Flin Flon is an amazing community full of amazing people. So, it’s no surprise that people step forward and contribute.

“I think the legacy and the hope for the future is that it supports winter tourism, because I think there’s a huge opportunity for winter tourism to grow up in that community and throughout the north.”

The lodge is expected to open on Jan. 30 with a festival-style weekend until sometime in March, when it starts to melt away.

“We’re just borrowing the snow for a while,” Hargraves said. “It goes back to being water. It goes back into the land. There’s a regenerative process, which I think is a beautiful telling of the story of winter and life on the Prairies and especially in the north.”

Anyone looking to rent the venue can contact the event coordinator via email.