By Marianne Christy
Tom Smedley, right, monitors the harvesting of ice blocks from Raquette Lake in this 2014 file photo by Gina Greco.
Raquette Lake Supply Company has begun plowing and prepping for the annual Raquette Lake Ice Harvest on Saturday, February 7, a tradition that dates back over a hundred years.
Pre-cutting of the ice, which is currently estimated at 18-inches thick, has begun by a team of volunteers who are working to open up the channel so the ice can be moved up the lake.
On Saturday at 8 a.m., they will team up to make the final cuts and help push the cubes of ice down the channel and up onto a conveyor belt to be transported by truck to the ice house at Raquette Lake Supply.
Jim Dillon, owner of Raquette Lake Supply and the organizer of the event, uses the harvested ice to help keep the coolers cold at his store.
Come summer, as the ice melts it drains down a tube and is recirculated as air conditioning for the office and adjoining Tap Room.
The Tap Room will be serving chicken and biscuits and soup along with its regular menu throughout the day.
Spectators are welcome to watch the harvest. Parents of young children are asked to keep a watchful eye on them as there will be some open water during the process.
