Chester on Ice! Annual Winter Carnival lures smiling families on a snowy weekend

By Shawn Cunningham
© 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC

A light snowfall helped set a festive mood as the annual Chester Winter Carnival kicked off on Saturday Feb 19. By 2 p.m., more than 150 kids had ridden the mini-snowmobiles, according to the Chester Snowmobile Club, which sponsored that portion of the event. One visitor from Long Island whose child had taken a few runs around the track behind Buttonwood Farm remarked that she couldn’t believe it was free of charge.

Across Lovers Lane at the Pinnacle Recreation Area, there was sledding on the hill, ice skating and a horse drawn sleigh ride by Smokeshire Farm. At 3 o’clock, the focus moved to the Academy Building on Main Street, where Jeff Day was demonstrating ice carving, followed by the burning of a wood sculpture by Barre Pinske and an evening hike on the new Brookside Trail.

Sunday was clear, cold and sunny as teams took to the ice rink for spirited games of broomball. Played with plastic “brooms” and a soccer ball, the game provided older “kids” with the opportunity to compete and fall down a lot. A good time was had by all. The weekend celebration was organized by the Chester Recreation Department. All photos by Shawn Cunningham. Click any photo to launch the gallery.