Winter carnival makes the most of the Minnesota cold

ST. PAUL, Minn. (WPVI) -- The Super Bowl might be the biggest celebration in Minnesota this week, but it's not the only one!

Action News took a trip to see the St. Paul Winter Carnival on Wednesday, a place where uniquely carve ice is its forte.

Formed in the late 1800's, it's the oldest winter festival in the United States.

The area at that time was just a frozen tundra, and our Canadian friends to the north mocked the locals for settling here.

That's how the winter carnival was born: to prove vibrant beautiful scenery could actually come from ice.

The crown jewel of this year's winter carnival is a 70-foot tall frozen ice palace shimmering in the middle of the park.

Tons of ice were cut from a nearby a lake to create this towering structure.

It's tradition in these ice palaces to have some unique items inside. Here they have the walleye - it's a staple fish here in Minnesota - then there's also pennies that people are sticking to the ice possibly for good luck

Five thousand blocks of ice carefully sculpted and laid in place all to impress those visiting this historic winter carnival.

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