Two Âé¶čAV men have turned 1,100 pounds of ice into one very special castle for the Âé¶čAV.
Father and son team, Georg Rieder Sr. and George Rieder Jr. took more than eight hours to create a sparkling ice castle â using just chainsaws and chisels.
âWe have a winter wonderland here,â said Rieder Sr. âWe have Santa Claus on top and we have a nice winter castle.â
Rieder Sr. has been carving ice for more than 30 years while his son picked up the chisel 15 years ago.
âIt was the only thing I hadn't tried before so that is how I got started,â laughed Rieder Sr.
âI like it. I love doing stuff like this.â
Rieder is originally from Germany and said ice carving is a purely Canadian passion of his.
âThis is a Canadian thing, absolutely.â
The Rieders receive the ice in 300 pound blocks from Arctic Ice in Âé¶čAV.
âThey do good quality work and make the blocks for us,â said Rieder. âWe start with the blocks and just start cutting away.â
The ice castle is now on display at the historic Guischan House Restaurant on Cameron Avenue where Rieder Sr. is the master chef.
