Hundreds come out to Ice Castles’ opening night in Lake George

The Ice Castles are now open in Charles Wood Park in Lake George. They’ve been a popular attraction in New Hampshire and around the Midwest. Sunday, hundreds of people came to see the first time the castles are popping up in New York.

The castles are made from hundreds of thousands of icicles that are hand placed by professional artists.

“What you’re looking at is about 25 million pounds of hand grown ice. We’re looking at about six to eight weeks of work,” said Vice President of Operations Jared Henningsen. “A very labor intensive process but obviously the results speak for themselves.”

It’s bringing plenty of excitement during a lull in Lake George. Local business leaders are hoping the icy attraction thaws a usual freeze in winter tourism as it’s expected to draw thousands of people to the area each week.

“They’ve been wonderful partners to us. We are seeing an uptick in local businesses, in restaurants and hotels, and we’re just thrilled to be part of the Lake George community and economy,” Henningsen said.

And it’ll be here as long as Mother Nature allows.

“When you dance with Mother Nature, you’ve got to kind of let her take the lead,” he said.

Tickets are sold through February right now, and many days are selling out quickly. Organizers recommend people buy tickets in advance here.