Fort is hot spot for neighborhood kids
By Angie Jackson
The Grand Rapids Press
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — The Rauwerda family is hoping for a cold and snowy winter.
That’s not on everyone’s wish list, but when you’re in the business of crafting extravagant ice forts, those are prime conditions. Outside their Grand Rapids home stands a large fort — a winter playground where kids spend hours throwing snowballs and sliding around on a structure made completely from snow and ice.
The ice house — with two rooms, a tunnel and a slide this year — causes drivers to stop and stare. Needless to say, it’s a hot spot for neighborhood kids, according to The Grand Rapids Press.
“We embrace winter. That’s pretty much what it is,” said Jim Rauwerda, who started the family tradition in 2008.
It all began with a fort for Rauwerda’s daughter, Annie, now 14. Rauwerda constructed a fort large enough for children to walk in and out of. He quickly fashioned stairs, walls and a slide for safety after neighborhood kids tried to climb on it.
Now his sons, Sammy, 5, and Joey, 10, are the kings of the ice houses.
Water is the key, Rauwerda said. The family fills up recycle bins with snow and adds a five-gallon bucket of water to make the snow slushy before allowing it to freeze overnight. The next day they have big, solid blocks that they can crack into smaller chunks using hot water.
Slush is used as mortar. Adding water so ice forms makes for a strong structure that can withstand some sunshine, Rauwerda said.
“If we get a thaw, then I condemn it and no one can go on it until it’s deemed safe,” he said. “You’d be surprised. One 50-degree day can just decimate that thing.”
Rauwerda’s building process has evolved since the more primitive days when his wife handed single buckets of water out the back door. For less running back-and-forth, they fill a garbage can with hose water to serve as their main source.
The bulk of the current fort went up in four hours last week. But Rauwerda isn’t done. He plans to add more walls and a roof.
The roof is crafted from solid ice blocks, a thick 8 to 10 inches of ice. It holds steady for Rauwerda to jump around on top, and for multiple kids to pile on.
The forts get the whole family outdoors. The kids’ new Wii went unused for some time a few years back, Rauwerda recalled. They had other entertainment.
“The kids are outside. They’re active,” he said. “This is snow and water, that’s it. It’s not genius.”
