Why build an ice tower of course!
I have been thinking about this for some time now. To build an ice tower you need three things, water, height and cold. Well cold comes every winter and winter is here (again). That part is easy. It is the combination of water and elevation that is difficult to find.
A cliff facing north with a water supply above is perfect, but sadly, rare. We have a few north facing hills on the property plus a creek running through, but unfortunately the creek runs below the hills, not above (funny how that is). I have scouted out possible sites but how to get water up there? Or maybe I should put some hydro poles up over the creek and pump water there? Possible but sounds like a lot of work.
Back at the house I was looking out at the lake, about 100 feet below the house. Yes the house is on the side of the hill overlooking the lake. Hey maybe a couple of poles in the lake and a pump on the ice? Hummm possible, maybe I should go outside and get a better view through the tree tops. Looking through the treetops? Say those two trees growing about 8 feet apart right beside the house. I bet the hose will stretch there. Yes it does! Now if I stretch a rope across and lean some boards up and then spray them with the hose - ice!
And so it started. I got about a 12 foot height started by first spraying by hand and then tying the hose to a stick stuck in the snow. I found that the mist setting works best. Next I put two ladders up against the trees and tied a rope about 25feet up and hung some old bed sheets down. The hose on the stick wasn't getting the water high enough so I bungie corded the hose to the ladder and sprayed from there. Having ice started on the second stage of the tower it was now time to add another section and continue building.
I had read a blog where snow fencing was used so I thought I would try that. One tree had a branch coming off about 10feet above the top of the second section of the tower. I strung three sections of snow fence together with a rope. I had Josh throw a block and rope over a high limb on the tree beside the higher ground at the house. With that I climbed the full height of the ladder on the other tree and tied the other end of the rope there. Then I pulled the snow fence up and across the gap and down to the ice below.
Now making ice is tricky. Too much water and you wash the ice away. Too little? Well I haven't had that problem yet. Also temperature is a factor. The colder the better. Last week saw above 0 temperatures so instead of making ice I watched it melt away. Generally the mist lands at the top and runs down as it cools before ice is formed. So, I am getting lots of ice at the bottom of the tower but not a lot above.
So how to get the water high and spray onto the ice below? Well the other tree has a branch coming out of it too, just higher. I climbed up to the branch, put a strap over with a couple of biners and then a rope. Yep time to get my harness on and tie in. No sense falling to my death building an ice wall.
So, having tied in I brought up a drill and eyehook and put the hook in about 3 feet out from the tree. Now with a rope through the hook I can pull up the nozzle and hose above the top of the ice wall. Once up I bungied the hose to a nearby tree and by twisting the hose I am able to direct the spray where I want (clever eh?). Want to move the nozzle to another place instead of under the hook? A second rope tied to the first above the nozzle and to the other side of the ice wall lets you pull the nozzle back and forth to cover parts ofthe snow fence that needs water.