Aqua Terra, I don't know what became of it. There were rumors of aliens either floating it away to their secret arctic destination using pyramid-relocation technology, or blasting it with a heat ray. Whatever happened, when one of our group returned in the summer, it was gone. Not a trace.

This thread does show the failure of an igloo constructed in May
https://www.clubtread.com/sforum/topi...TOPIC_ID=16031

Warmth is, of course the destroyer of these igloos. At this altitude, 3025 ft., a thaw can happen in any month of the year. We try to pick a spot that is open so there is lots of snow, but shaded to reduce the rays from the sun. It is interesting to see the consequences of dry very cold winds — this article shows the wind/heat erosion of these Grand Shelters Icebox igloos on Denali at 14,200 Feet:
http://www.grandshelters.com/denali-igloos

There is talk of folks spending the night there. If anyone is interested, drop me a note or call me so we don't have too many people trying to share that interior space. (My web site has my contact info.)

There is a plan for our group to build a 9-foot inside diameter igloo in the same location described in this thread (above), on New Year's Day, 2018. Folks are welcome to visit. Please keep kids and dogs from trampling fresh snow (see the points below).

If you are interested in participating here are some pointers that will help you to understand the process.

• In addition to warm winter clothes, bring some shovels for digging snow. The best device for moving snow seems to be large pails. We like the 5-gallon paint pails. Use clean new ones. If they have dried paint inside, the snow won’t slide out easily.
• fresh snow near the igloo site is a valuable resource. Builders and visitors should approach the igloo by only one path. That means folks should store packs and other equipment some distance from the site. Be sure that visitors (including their kids and dogs) use only the one path and do not walk around in the area of fresh snow. The first people to the site should be thoughtful about creating that ‘one path,’ and then not walking on the fresh snow.
• When the site of the igloo is determined, the first job is to flatten the site. The centre of the igloo will have the Icebox’s ball joint buried in the snow, and the assembled Icebox will be used to mark out the circle for the wall. The crew will walk (stamp) on the snow that will be under the wall to work-harden a foundation. They will also do that for the ring around the outside of the wall where people will be standing to deliver snow and to construct the upper courses.
• For the first course, the Icebox has to be angled inward. The angle is marked on the yellow panel that holds the larger black panels. Be sure that the Icebox is at a right angle to the pole.
• Don’t fill the icebox to the top. Leave about an inch at the top. When packing snow into the Icebox, pack snow to snow, not snow to plastic.
• A new block is fragile for the first 45 minutes. It will harden. When dumping snow into to the Icebox, be careful not to hit the plastic form with a shovel or pail because that will break the block. Moving the icebox is a delicate operation so as not to break the block. BTW, if the temperature is 4º below freezing or lower, about 90 minutes after the igloo is complete, a person could stand on it. (This is NOT recommended, but I have done that once.)
• Lumpy snow or pieces of crust cannot be used. People bringing snow to the wall should break up all the lumps and completely crumble any crust. If there is soft fresh snow, it is helpful to churn it a bit before pouring it into the Icebox — that helps begin the job of sintering the flakes to make a solid wall. BTW, if snow is put into a pail and left for a few minutes, it will harden into lumps. When the snow has been difficult to manage, we’ve had people at a ‘quarry’ mining and preparing the snow, others delivering the prepared snow, and two people building the wall: one to manage the Icebox and pack snow, and one to pour the freshly mined snow into the form.
• If you are the packing the snow in the Icebox, it is not necessary to pack really hard. The ideal pressure is 6 – 7 pounds (3 kilograms). Try pressing on a bathroom scale to see what that feels like.
• Unlike building a snow cave or a quinzee, this is not hot sweaty work. So, folks need to be dressed warmly. Wet hands become cold hands, so an extra set of dry mitts is useful.
• Small items at the site can disappear if dropped on the snow. When not using a shovel or other device, be sure to stand it up so it is easily seen. Put small items in a pack or pocket (and try to remember where).
• If you find yourself without something to do, take one of the large 5 gal pails, pack it full of snow, and un-mold the cylinder of snow. Near the ending of the construction of the igloo, when the cylinders have hardened, they can be used to make steps to reach the top… or as blocks around the door.
• Snow should be piled up around the bottom course of blocks, outside the igloo, to make a ledge. As the wall builders walk on this snow, over the hours, it will harden and make it easier to reach the top.
• For folks who’ve never worked with snow, part of the discovery of the process is the way snow that has been ‘worked’ will harden over an hour or so. In the beginning of the process, it will be easy to accidentally knock the centre pivot ball out of position — the snow supporting it is still soft. When we complete the igloo, we will have some difficulty chipping it out of the icy centre of the igloo’s floor.

This is a 4 minute time-lapse video of a 10’ inside diameter igloo made with dry Winnipeg snow. This backyard site is somewhat tamer than the semi-wilderness site we’ll be using.

For more information, here are the inventors of the Icebox creating a tutorial.

BTW, we don’t make a ‘ramp’ from one course to the next. We think the igloo is stronger without the ramp.

Fine print: this igloo will be made with the finest materials (Canadian snow) and excellent workmanship. Nevertheless any user enters the site at his/her own risk. Snow changes its characteristics over time and with local conditions. The igloo is very heavy, and the structure will eventually fail. It is weakest when the temperatures are close to the freezing point of water. Use your own judgment when approaching or entering it. It is not a kids' play structure. It is, after all, just made of snow. Please repair any damage.

Good stuff, what a great way to spend new years day!

An igloo with a 10 foot interior diameter has an interior surface of 78.5 square feet. At current new construction Vancouver prices, this could be quite a profitable venture!

On New Year's Day, 2018, eight of us built a 9-foot inside diameter igloo on Hollyburn Mountain. We used the same clearing that was the site of several igloos in previous years.

You are welcome to visit the site. Note the Fine Print statement about approaching an igloo that is at the bottom of a previous post in this thread. Reports on its condition would be interesting. If you plan to spend the night, be sure to take a shovel inside, especially if there is a chance of snowfall. You cannot burn it down, but if you cook inside, you will need to have some ventilation. Please repair any damage.

You may visit it here: http://goo.gl/maps/P07zO

Great idea taking a time lapse video of the build!

I spent some time at the igloo today. With all of the rain and warm temperatures in recent days, it has sagged dramatically. When I first saw it, the catenary shape was gone, and it was much lower — a squarish mound of fresh snow.


I shovelled out the entryway. The foundation of the igloo was very firm and the entrance tunnel had not changed. Note how low is the top of the igloo compared to the shovel.


Amazingly, there was still room inside the igloo. It has been slowly sagging, like a balloon deflating.

For more pictures of the inside, I've posted them on my blog:
https://howesound.wordpress.com/2018...burn-mountain/

Stumbled across the igloo today, lots of new snow. It's still standing but we didn't check out the inside.

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Thanks Martin. I'm passing the link of this thread to the other igloo makers. They'll appreciate the news.

I think that if I were skiing into a remote wilderness campsite without a tent because I was counting on returning to my igloo, and I that is what I found, I might be a bit disappointed.

But, I'm wondering if it were at 5000 feet on the north side of Cloudburst, would it have been cold enough up there so as not to sag?

Our group of igloo-makers was trying to see if we could assemble enough people for a dome this year. Well, several met for a happy brunch in town today... And the big story this season is that there is currently a team at the base of K2 planning a winter assent of The Savage Mountain. A unique feature of this climb is that they'll not be using tents; they've decided to make igloos using the same tool that has worked well for us for over a decade, the IceBox®.

On January 21, expedition leader, Alex Txikon wrote from K2:
Alex is on Facebook, and a video at AthleticClub.

Stunning and amazing, Thanks for sharing Howesound.

Love your tradition, hope you keep this up and add updates to this in the future.

K

There is a wonderful article published yesterday at the blog of Alex Txikon, that is written and signed by the Sherpas at K2, which includes comments about the igloos being constructed with the Icebox. (It is is also revealing to learn something of the relationship between the Sherpas and team leader Alex Txikon.) To read the whole post:https://alextxikon.com/post/130/en

It has been two years since we constructed an igloo, and the group has an itch to make another one. Tomorrow, Sunday Jan. 5. Same place and process as last time (see the details earlier in this thread). We'll probably head into the woods about 9:30am.

The 9-foot inside diameter igloo was built on Sunday January 5, 2020, in (what was for us) record time. There was deep fresh snow and more was falling as we worked — it made construction very easy. We were done sometime before 2 PM.

I am writing 24 hours later, and the nearby ski resort is reporting that an additional 17 cm of new snow has fallen up there.

We were pleased to find enough snow in the clearing that, after flattening the site and work hardening the snow under the walls of the igloo (to be the foundations of the dome), there was still enough snow to dig an entry-way that was below the floor and foundation of the igloo. The layers of snow at the site were interesting. Below the new soft snow was a denser layer, and below that a slab of hard crusty snow. Between the crust and the ground was faceted sugar snow.

You are welcome to visit. Because the entry is filling with new snow, bring a shovel. If you find the entrance too tight of a squeeze, don't enlarge by cutting it higher — that would weaken the foundation and walls of the igloo. A little wider is okay, and it would be okay to lengthen the trench inside the igloo. To understand the construction of this igloo, read my earlier posts in this thread. Note the fine print below.

I'd love a report on its condition.


Fine print: this igloo was made with the finest materials (Canadian snow) and excellent workmanship. Nevertheless any user enters the site at his/her own risk. Snow changes its characteristics over time and with local conditions. The igloo is very heavy, and the structure will eventually fail. It is weakest when the temperatures are close to or above the freezing point of water. Use your own judgment when approaching or entering it. It is not a kids' play structure. It is, after all, just made of snow. Please repair any damage.

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nice work, Howesound. Great you are keeping up that tradition.

K