Quinzhee (n.) According to Wikipedia, a quinzhee is a "a Canadian snow shelter made from a large pile of loose snow that is shaped, then hollowed. This is in contrast to an igloo, which is built up from blocks of hard snow, and a snow cave, constructed by digging into the snow. The word is of Athabaskan origin and entered the English language by 1984. A quinzhee can be made for winter camping and survival purposes, or for fun."
On February 24, we went up to the trailhead by Donut Falls and built our very own quinzhee. Our purpose? Pure fun. The youth had built a quinzhee while Winter Camping in Heber. Once she saw the pictures, Annika starting begging for us to make one as well. So when Talia had a birthday party that was sledding in the same place, the rest of us grabbed some shovels and started piling.
Eli and Jason did the lion's share of the work, but Annika and I helped too...at least for a while.
American Gothic winter-style.
Time to start hollowing out. You head upwards first so that you don't have the weight of a lot of snow on top of you in case of collapse. It's easy to tell when you are getting close to the surface because the snow turns blue.
Nicely done!
Talia came back to see and thought our creation was pretty cool.
Anyone else reminded of "A Christmas Story"? You can tell that frontal lobe isn't fully developed yet.
A photo with Ms. Delfin. (It was her daughter Beyah's birthday.)
Talia, Clara, and all the fun friends. Amazing how many teens you can fit inside a quinzhee!
Quinzhee on folks, quinzhee on.
1 comment:
Quinzhee concept and building / demolition stages are ideal for youthful adventurers. Fun, fun, and more fun. I hope Talia's frozen tongue has defrosted. Smile.
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