Ice Harvest Begins on Little Detroit Lake

DETROIT LAKES (KDLM) – The ice harvest on Little Detroit Lakes has begun.

Volunteers will harvest around 2,000 blocks of ice from the lake to create this year’s Ice Palace. Each block weighs approximately 1,000 lbs.

When complete, the palace will be around 95 feet long, 24 feet deep and 32 feet high. That’s nearly double the length of the first ice palace built in 2018.

Spectators are encouraged to watch the ice harvest and the palace construction from the Detroit Lakes Pavilion, “The Pavilion will be open, you’ll be out of the wind and able to see. The Becker County Museum will have an ice harvest exhibit so you can see the history of ice in Detroit Lakes,” said Carrie Johnston with the Detroit Lakes Regional Chamber of Commerce.

The Ice Palace is scheduled to be complete by Feb. 11, the first day of Polar Fest and unveiled to the public with a Grand Lighting Ceremony at 7 p.m.

The palace will then be open to the public each day throughout the Polar Fest celebrations, concluding Sunday, Feb. 27.

You can watch a live video feed of the ice harvest and palace construction at IceHarvestDL.com