Nearly everything at the Winter Carnival is designed to be family friendly. Bundle up the kids and check out these events. There’s enough spectacle and fun to distract everyone from the cold.

 

MOON GLOW PEDESTRIAN PARADE: JAN. 22

Want to be in a parade? Here’s a chance to kick off the carnival and walk with festival organizers, local leaders and neighbors. Bring your candles, flashlights and anything else that lights up. Gather for a 5:30 p.m. start at the Securian Building (410 N. Robert St.) and head up Fourth Street to Rice Park, where you’ll be greeted with beverages from the ice bar and flames shooting out of hot air balloon baskets.

 

RED BULL CRASHED ICE JAN. 22-JAN. 25

The sheer spectacle at Red Bull Crashed Ice may distract any kid from the cold and the crowds. Skaters hurl themselves four at a time from the steps of the Cathedral of St. Paul and race down a twisting 1,400-foot ice ramp. This is the fourth consecutive year that St. Paul has hosted one of four international stops in the Ice Cross Downhill World Championship series. Find more details at http://stpaul.gov/CrashedIce and more a tredbull.com/us/en.

 

ICE CARVING IN RICE PARK: JAN. 22-FEB. 1

Head to Rice Park to watch ice sculptures take shape as teams in the multi-block contest pull out the chainsaws and chisels at 9 a.m. Thursday and wrap up for judging 9 a.m. Saturday. The one-day single-block competition runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Jan. 25. Sculptures are up through Feb. 1. But catch them before they melt! Dusk is a magical time, when everything twinkles in the floodlights.

 

WELLS FARGO WINTERSKATE: THROUGH FEB. 1

Twirl in the shadow of Landmark Center on an outdoor refrigerated ice rink. Open skate hours vary but are generally 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Mondays-Wednesdays, 11 a.m.- 10 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays and 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sundays. Skating is free. No skates? No problem. Rentals are $4 or free with a Wells Fargo bankcard. Fifth and Washington streets, just outside of Landmark Center; wellsfargowinterskate.com.

 

VULCAN SNOW PARK AT THE STATE FAIRGROUNDS: JAN. 23-FEB. 1

Beyond downtown St. Paul, the State Fairgrounds is a second Winter Carnival epicenter. Teams mold and chisel 8-foot blocks of snow for the snow sculpture contest. Last year, the winner was a honeybee on a flower next to its hive. The year before that, it was life-size bull moose in battle with two wolves. Teams start Friday and finish at 1 p.m. Jan. 25, Vulcan Fun Day, which includes fire truck rides, a treasure hunt and the award ceremony at 2 p.m. Sculptures are up through Feb. 1 and lit at night. The 15-foot snow slide is back this year with $1 rides on sleds. Kettle corn, booya and non-alcoholic beverages are available for purchase. Minnesota State Fairgrounds, entrance off Snelling at 1265 N. Snelling Ave., St. Paul; check times at MNSnowPark.com.

 

GRANDE DAY PARADE AND POST-PARADE FUN: JAN. 24

The newly crowned King Boreas leads carnival royalty, marching bands, floats and the bouncing girls in the Grande Day Parade. It gets rolling at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Smith High Bridge and follows West Seventh Street to Rice Park. After the parade, head to the St. Paul Hotel for $1 hot cocoa and treats in the lobby 1-4 p.m. Or pop into Landmark Center at 2 p.m. for bouncy houses, crafts and stage performances.

 

AUTONOMOUS SNOWPLOWS: JAN. 24-25

Engineering students from eight colleges and universities compete in the fifth annual autonomous snowplow competition. Why shovel when you can program a robotic snowplow? Rolling plows with names like “Snowmenator” use sensors, lasers, GPS and other tech tricks to push snow in a straight line and around corners. 1-6 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. with awards at 2:30 p.m. Jan. 25; West Fourth Street, between Rice Park and the St. Paul Public Library; free; autosnowplow.com.

 

WINTER CARNIVAL GEOCACHING

It’s a treasure hunt everyone can win. Download a free GPS app from the iTunes store or grab your Garmin and track down containers hidden in parks around St. Paul. Each cache can be found by following the GPS coordinates. Entry forms and coordinates are available at the Winter Carnival Merchandise Mart in Rice Park or at the Carnival office in Landmark Center, 75 W. Fifth St., St. Paul, Room 429.

 

VULCAN VICTORY TORCHLIGHT PARADE: JAN. 31

Catch the carnival finale at 5:30 p.m. as the Vulcan Victory Torchlight Parade marches from Union Depot up Fifth Street to Rice Park. Watch the Vulcan Krewe stage the annual overthrow of King Boreas on the steps of the St. Paul Public Library. Fireworks, launched from Raspberry Island, wrap up the show.

Maja Beckstrom can be reached at 651-228-5295.

Copyright 2015 Pioneer Press.