EXETER — What do two Seacoast natives do on cold New Hampshire days on the Squamscott River? They build an igloo.
Bob Parizo of Portsmouth and Kirk Kucharski of Exeter began construction of the igloo on Jan. 29 and within a few days had finished the 16-foot-wide and 10-foot-tall structure near Exeter’s downtown.
“We ice fish too,” said Parizo. “Fish haven’t been biting much, so we decided to go ahead with” the igloo. Parizo and Kucharski began on a Saturday and had most of it done that day, and within 18 to 20 hours of labor, they were finished.
The hardest part of constructing the arctic building was placing ice blocks at shoulder height or higher, Kucharski said. The ice blocks have to be built on a slant and “they tend to shift,” he said.
The friends used an 8-foot step ladder to build the structure upward, and then stood on top of the igloo to finish it off. The finishing touch is an icicle, spearing the middle of the dome.
In terms of constructing the igloo, Parizo and Kucharski found slush to be a great way to cement the blocks together, and when it’s cold enough “they just stick.”
Parizo and Kucharski call themselves the Eagles Nest Outing Club and say their motto is “to promote health and fitness through outdoor activities,”
The pair wanted to build on the Squamscott River because they were born here and say it is a great spot for people to see and enjoy. Exeter’s history also makes it a prime location for the igloo.
Last year was their first attempt at the igloo and, according to Parizo, the first ever built on the Squamscott River. “Most igloos are made out of snow,” said Parizo.
Ice igloos are sturdier and harder to build, but “the conditions have to be right,” he said. Parizo and Kucharski say the best ice conditions are clear, freshwater ice and cold weather. Last year the ice was in better igloo-building condition than this year, but the weather was warmer. This year, the conditions are opposite.
“You can see the storms in the ice,” said Parizo, “there’s different layers” pointing to the snow mixed into the blocks of ice.
Parizo, Kucharski, and a friend, Glenn Eberhardt cut blocks of ice from the frozen river with ice saws and chain saws, used tongs to grab the ice, and a wooden post to pivot the blocks up and out of the river.
Kucharski, a mason by trade, said they plan to build a variation of the igloo next year. The plan is to still have an enclosed structure, but one more sculpted and designed next winter.
“We feel we’re ready for that,” he says. But the pair say they will need more help next year and hope to find recruits.
The structure is near Swasey Parkway and, if the weather is cold enough, should last another couple of weeks, according to Parizo and Kucharski. The igloo can be seen well from the edge of the river on Water Street and people are welcome to visit the igloo, but as the sign says, “enter at your own risk.”