Amid Warm Temps, St. Paul Winter Carnival Still Happening

These crazy and unseasonably warm temperatures that we are experiencing might be putting a damper on some winter events, but not the annual St. Paul Winter Carnival.  That event is alive and well with several events happening even now, and will continue through the beginning of February.

Right now, there is a new release of a craft beer. It's the Winter CarnivALE from St. Paul Brewing. And then there is also a limited edition soda.  This one is from the Northern Soda Company. It's called the Cranberry Lime Pop-Tail.  Fun play on words there.  It's a limited edition soda which will be released this Saturday, December 30th from Noon to 4pm.

After these two drink releases, then the real carnival fun begins. Starting on January 1, there is an ice fishing contest.  You might wonder how they are going to do this since the ice situation is fairly scarce.  Well, it's digital, so you can go fishing anywhere in Minnesota, and it lasts all month. You do have to download the fishdonkey mobile app in order to participate.

Can you grow a beard quickly?  There is a beard growing competition.  This lasts basically the entire month of January.

There are several events involving the carnival royalty and also the Klondike Kate contest.

There is a fire and ice dinner.  That will be held at the St. Paul Pool and Yacht Club.  You will need reservations for this event.

Hopefully the weather will be conducive for the annual snow stomp.  This event is held on January 20th.

Drop by Vulcan Snow Park to see how the giant snow blocks are created. Better yet, sign up to be a volunteer snow stomper! The Vulcans pack a lot of activity into this day, using some pretty cool machinery. 

You could even win $10,000!!  Or at least a portion of that 10K. This is through the annual treasure hunt.  This event happens on Sunday, the 21st of January. Details on the Winter Carnival website.

The ACTUAL carnival kicks off the end of January, after all of these other events are leading up to it.  The annual kickoff will happen on January 25th with a laser light show.

It's official - the 2024 Saint Paul Winter Carnival is back, better than ever!  Join us at Rice Park and help celebrate the start of “The Coolest Celebration on Earth” on Thursday, January 25, 2024.  Gather your family and friends at Rice Park starting at 5:30 p.m., and at 6 p.m....

Organizers of the carnival say that they know it will get colder throughout January, but not too cold to where people won't want to come out and particpate in the events.  So, they are calling that a win-win.  You can get all of the information on these events leading up to the offical start, and the actual carnival by checking out the offical website.

So, at least there is one event that is still on.  There are some others that are still hanging on to hope of colder temperatures, the ice maze that was planned in Eagen has been cancelled due to the warm-ish weather.