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Yellowknife’s Snowking offers castle construction tours

Workers at Yellowknife's Snowcastle build walls in January 2021
Workers at Yellowknife's Snowcastle build walls in January 2021. Ollie Williams/Cabin Radio
Marty One-Boot offers insight into Snowcastle construction in 2021.

Ever wondered exactly how the Snowcastle appears on Yellowknife Bay each March?

The crew that builds the castle will offer tours of its construction throughout February, Snowkings’ Winter Festival announced on Facebook this week.

Organizers suggested a construction tour might be a fun break for staff at local businesses or a new insight for tour companies’ clients.

Members of the public are equally welcome to attend. Entry is by donation.

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Anyone taking a tour will learn “more about how we build the castle” and be able to take a closer look at the building as it takes shape. You can visit at 1:30pm any Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday from January 31 to February 25.

The walls require wooden frames, a snowblower and some nerve while workers stand under a blizzard of snow and compress it with their feet, an art form known as “the pour.” Watch the video above for more.