Rocky and Bullwinkle ride down Broadway in the Saranac Lake Winter Carnival parade on Feb. 14. (Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)

SARANAC LAKE — As Saranac Lakers hang up their ACME mallets, Thneed jackets and jellyfishing nets after Cartoonival and digest their spinach, lasagna and Who-hash, it’s time to start thinking up ideas for next year’s Winter Carnival theme.

If you’re smarter than the average bear, you’ll send theme ideas to theme.slwintercarnival@gmail.com to be considered.

The theme selection meetings have been scheduled for April 14 and 28. Both will be held at the Elks Lodge on the corner of Bloomingdale Avenue and Church Street at 5:30 p.m.

All committee meetings are open to the public to join and participate in.

Carnival Committee Chair Jeff Branch said at the April 14 meeting, that the committee will narrow down the options to the top few theme ideas. These will be presented to the public to gauge reactions.

At the April 28 meeting, the vote on the 2027 theme will be taken.

“A good theme is family-friendly, it can’t be any copyright infringement, something that people can really get into for the parade,” Branch said. “Something that really drives the imagination.”

Themes like Cartoonival that span multiple generations are encouraged, too, he said. Themes also cannot have been used in the past 20 years.

On Thursday, the Cartoonival Slideshow featuring some of the thousands of photos taken by official Carnival photographer Meachele Manchester and her crew will premiere at Will Rogers independent living retirement community at 78 Will Rogers Dr. at 2:30 and 7:30 p.m.

The public is invited to join in and have been dared to dress up as their favorite cartoon character one more time.

The dates for next year’s Carnival have been set for Feb. 5 through 14. Branch said they are having the closing weekend on President’s Day weekend again next year. This gives the ice one more week to grow as the Ice Palace Workers 101 construct the Ice Palace.

Branch said next year will mark the 130th year of Saranac Lake’s Winter Carnival.

Below is a list of the past 20 years of Winter Carnival themes:

2026: Cartoonival

2025: Music Legends

2024: Creepy Carnival

2023: Roman Around Carnival

2022: Totally ’80s

2021: Masquerade

2020: Myths and Legends

2019: Prehistoric Park

2018: Adirondack Festival

2017: Adirondack Wildlife

2016: Superheroes and Villains

2015: The Groovy ’60s

2014: Celtic Carnival

2013: Under the Sea

2012: Space Alien Invasion

2011: Medieval Times

2010: Adirondack Cowboy

2009: Pirates of the Adirondacks

2008: Hooray for Hollywood

2007: Fabulous ’50s

2006: The Roaring ’20s