HOT?.. SNO dreams of the COOLEST places on Earth

Snoman ski holidays 0

We’re feeling hot hot hot as the temperature soars above a sizzling 30°C in what seems like the most sweltering heatwave in history.

But as the summer we’ve all been waiting for makes an appearance, we couldn’t help but daydream of cold, cold snow crunching under foot, frosty snowflakes melting on the palm and that cooling wind that rushes past chairlifts – maybe the heat’s getting to us…

Whatever the reason, we’re sure you won’t mind taking a second to cool off with this one – a paean to everything sub-zero, here’s a list of the coolest, iciest activities in the mountains.

Ice Swimming, Lapland

Lots of Lapps start their day with a dunk for the rush of energy, and as you sit cooking at the computer or boiling on the bus, it’s hard to think of anything more refreshing than a dip in deliciously ice cool waters. This is actually a HUGE pastime in Finnish parts of the world, and as good for you as a gallon of wheatgrass.

Ice Carving, Lake Louise

Banff Lake Louise Tourism / Paul Zikka Photography

While we’re franticly cramming ice trays into the freezer, for the last 20 years, sculptors from around the world have made beelines for Lake Louise in January to test their mettle in a 34 hour Ice Carving Competition. While spectators look on, jaws slack, the masters whittle huge blocks of ice into the sculptures to win them eternal glory and a 1^st place prize of $2,500. The resort makes a weekend of it, holding events in which little chippers can carve their own, skate out to the Ice Castle on the lake, or join in the Ice Magic Scavenger hunt round its sides.

Snow Windsurfing, Ylläs

Forget sticky sunscreen or that nasty salt and sand skin rub you never asked for – windsurf in Finland and it’s all about rolling on the snow. Finnish kite surfers weren’t going to let something like frozen waves and sub-zero temperatures take the wind out of their sails. Strapping skis and skates to their summer boards, they took to the ice on what’s now a hugely popular pass-time. Today you’ll even find international Snowsurfing championships in the icier corners of the world. To train you up to pro standard, Talvisurf have the courses, a huge frozen lake and just the right icy winds for you to sail off (skilfully) into the sunset.

Ice Climbing, La Plagne

At the moment, moving just one arm in this heat seems like mission impossible. Scaling sheer faces of ice with tools that look like curved cocktail sticks may strike you as the stuff best left to Bourne or Bond, but with the right training (and a few safety ropes) you too can ascend like a special agent. With ascents for climbers of all abilities (including none at all), La Plagne’s unique Ice Tower is 24m of frozen water which is topped up daily with spritzes of H2O. Pretty terrifying when taken slowly, the tower also annually plays host an ice climbing world cup, in which adrenalin-crazed climbers race to the top.

Ice Driving, Val Thorens

While the rest of us are either wishing we’d gone for the car with air-con, or dreading stepping out of our air conditioned heaven into the heat, the ice rally drivers of the world are only just thawing out from last season. Frozen lakes are fashioned into swerving circuits, cushioned by snow banks and skidded round on ice studded tyres. The Ice Driving Academy in Val Thorens, used for the annual Trophée Andros races, offers courses with master of the sport, Alan Proust, for practicing Steering, counter-steering, braking on the slipperiest of surfaces. Ice karting and ice buggy sessions make great alternatives for family fun.

Ice Diving, Tignes

If your main aim for the day is to get from baking hot office to a refreshingly cold shower, picture travelling from the top of a mountain to the bottom of a lake in the space of a day with the Tignes Evolution 2 ski school. The experience isn’t for claustrophobes, nychtophobes or sedatephobes…(it’s dark down there, involves navigating narrow ice tunnels and the silence could chill the bones) but if you need refreshing, this should do the trick rather nicely. Once you’re through the tight spots, you’ll bath in the kaleidoscope of light refracted from the surface of the ice and the crystal clarity of the water, where there’s less algae and microscopic life to cloud your view.

Ice Skating, Lake Louise

Banff Lake Louise Paul Zikka Photography

Though the only shape most of us will ever throw when we’re “dancing” on ice is the human pretzel, when we manage to stay upright, gliding around at top speeds can really put the wind in your sails – no furiously fanning ourselves with this morning’s Metro over here. Serious skaters will rack up plenty of mileage in Lake Louise, where a collection of 7 natural and man-made rinks include what CNN voted the “most beautiful ice rink on the planet” in front of the Fairmont.

Snow Village, Levi

Where the Vatican (currently 32°C) has the Sistine Chapel, and India (37°C) the Taj Mahal, Levi (today a cool 16°C, but gorgeously glacially chilly throughout the winter) has the glistening Snow Village, an entire carved settlement straight out of Frozen. You can marry in the ice chapel here, shuffle through to the ice bar for cocktails and disco, then retreat to colourfully lit ice suites. Each year the village is brought low by the sun and carved anew (and each time differently).

Ice Fishing, Saariselkä

Even if just the thought of regular fishing gives you sunburn, trust us when we say that the ice version is a whole other kettle of, well, fish – for starters there’s no quietly roasting until you’re steamy and pink as a salmon fillet. After heading out to the middle of deliciously sub-zero nowhere, you make a hole through the ice, dip in a lure and stretch out on furs to wait… So far pretty similar, but with ice fishing you have the bonus of a sonar unit to detect whether there are fish below you and heated ice shanties, in which to cook up your catch. Known to have some of the world’s clearest waters, Finland is big on the pastime. In Saariselkä the snowmobile route from Ivalo to the Inari parish village is always dotted with ice anglers, and there are courses for those who love a frosty treat. It’s just the place to practice for Hwacheon in S Korea’s annual Ice Fishing Festival in January, which is known to draw nearly a million visitors.

Ice walk, Banff National Park

Forget elbowing your way through the crowds of overheated British streets or trying not to swap sweat with the tube rider next to you. Wind your way through a naturally forged ice kingdom in the Banff National Park, along the steel walkway that’s hammered into the walls of the Johnston canyon. Peering down onto the frozen bed of the gorge, walkers are guided past frozen waterfalls and pillars of blue ice, moving from the lower falls up to the breathtaking upper icefalls, frequently at night, using headlamps to light the way. Over in the nearby Grotto Canyon, you can actually walk on the frozen bed of the creek, through a narrow canyon, passing unusual rock formations and ancient Native rock art to a weeping ice waterfall.

Nature’s Ice Palace, Hintertux Glacier near Mayrhofen

You could touch a brick wall today and lose fingerprints, but this Ice Palace’s walls are still effortlessly cool. As Mother Nature graces us with glorious sunshine, she’s keeping things snowy in the highest of the Alps… to provide a blissful retreat for those spending their summer in nearby Mayrhofen. Those lucky devils can re-connect with their goose-pimples inside the stunning glacier, exploring ice stalactites, frozen waterfalls and a glacial lake – then clip into those bindings for a spot of summer skiing… well, at least envy’s leaving us cold.

Help us keep down the degrees today while we wish away the weeks until our next ski holiday – we’d love to hear about your favourite cooling activities, ice-cream and Pimm’s snaps also welcome!