Ogden igloo maker crafts 16-foot-long igloo after years of low snowfall
Mark Wayment looks inside the door of an igloo built in front of his home Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, on the 1000 block of Douglas Ave. in Ogden.
Mark Wayment stands between an unfinished igloo and one he has had finished for two weeks. He said this year's snow has been better than that of the past seven years. He has not been able to complete an igloo in all that time, he said. Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016.
OGDEN — The National Weather Service may be able to offer statistics of increased precipitation this year, but Ogden resident Mark Wayment has a visual.
It’s a 16-foot long igloo in his front yard on the 1000 block of Douglas Street in Ogden.
Wayment, who has been constructing igloos for 40 something years, said he’s not been able to complete an igloo in Ogden for seven years.
“I would build one so high and it would cave in on you,” he said of his efforts before this year. “Last year, I was so disappointed.”
But this year, it just kept on snowing, he said, noting his excitement for the weather and its benefits.
“We need it to fill the lake,” he said.
This year’s snow structure has been a hit with neighborhood kids, who look at the edifice as they walk to school, and with Wayment’s many nieces and nephews. He said some of the younger relatives were starting to wonder if they’d ever get to see one of his igloos.
“If there’s enough snow, my passion is building an igloo,” said Wayment, who has been building the structures since 1972.
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JANAE FRANCIS/Standard-Examiner
Mark Wayment stands next to a six-foot tall igloo he built in front of his house Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, on the 1000 block of Douglas Street in Ogden. It has been seven years since Ogden has had enough snow for Wayment to build an igloo, he said.
“It’s the young kid in me,” he admitted. “Instead of snowmen, I guess I have to keep up with the Eskimos.”
Wayment had planned to go a long ways in finishing a second igloo Wednesday. The base of a second, smaller structure sits next to his completed one in his yard.
“I thought I’d wake up to three or four inches (of new snow),” he said.
A construction worker by trade, Wayment said building igloos satisfies his inner desire of putting things together.
He said his large igloo took him about 25 hours to complete in about four nights.
Continued cold is imperative for building an igloo, he said, noting that the secret to building the snow structures is overnight freezing that can work as a foundation for the next day’s work.
The large igloo stood about 10 feet tall two weeks ago before warm weather arrived. Now, it has shrunken somewhat in the warmer weather since then.
But Wayment hopes that warm weather will give way to colder temperatures again.
“I know we need a lot more winter,” he said. “We need a lot more moisture. It would be nice to catch up. Our lake’s getting mighty low.”
Wayment said he’s planning to enjoy his igloo as much as he can while it lasts.
“I’m sure by mid February it will start melting,” he said.
You may reach reporter JaNae Francis at 801-625-4228. Follow her on Twitter at @JaNaeFrancisSE or like her on Facebook.
