SARANAC LAKE - A January thaw that hit its peak on Monday with steady rain and 50 degree temperatures has forced the Winter Carnival Ice Palace committee to tear down what they've built so far.
Once the cold weather returns, however, volunteers are hoping to build a smaller version of the Palace before the Feb. 5 start of Winter Carnival.
Aided by inmate crews from the state's Moriah Shock Correctional Facility, volunteers started building this year's Ice Palace last Thursday. After four days of work, more than 10 rows of ice blocks pulled from Pontiac Bay in Lake Flower had been placed to form the outside walls of the Palace.
As the rain poured down on Monday, large holes could be seen between the rows of blocks, making the most important part of the structure, its base, unsafe. Yellow tape was put around the site to keep onlookers at a safe distance.
Dean Baker, chairman of the Ice Palace committee, said what's been built so far will have to be taken down.
"I looked at this morning, and it was pretty bad," Baker said Monday afternoon. "It's only gotten worse since then."
The committee is now planning to build a smaller version of the Ice Palace, but it will be at least another day before volunteers can even get back onto Pontiac Bay to cut more ice blocks, Baker said.
"There's a big puddle of water there now," he said. "We've got to let everything firm up before we can even go near it. But it looks like we're going to have to downsize."
Temperatures are expected to return to the 20s and 30s today and Wednesday, with scattered snow showers in the forecast, according to the National Weather Service in Burlington. Even colder weather is expected by the end of the week. Friday's high temperature is forecasted to be around 10 above.
