Lake George, businesses banking on annual Winter Carnival

PHOTOGRAPHER: Patrick Dodson

Glenn Durlacher, of Glenn Tree Art in Queensbury, carves a "bear-hug couch" for the Lake George Winter Carnival which starts this weekend at Shepard Park, on Friday, February 6, 2015. The annual carnival continues each weekend of February.

Outhouse races on the frozen lake and a chili cook-off will be highlights Saturday as the Lake George Winter Carnival kicks off its 54th year in Lake George village.

The Winter Carnival will run every weekend through February, with a variety of activities in the village and on the lake.

The opening ceremony will be held at noon today at Shepard Park in the heart of downtown, with both the chili cook-off in the park and outhouse races starting at 12:30 p.m.

There will also be a parade down Canada Street at 4 p.m., followed by a bonfire on the beach, with fireworks at 6 p.m.

“We expect a couple of thousand people,” said Linda Duffy, co-owner of Duffy’s Tavern and one of the event organizers.

The ice just off the village shore is already 12 inches thick, Duffy said — thick enough to allow motorized races, though they won’t start until next weekend.

For next weekend, Duffy said hotels in town — those not closed for the winter, that is — are already pretty booked up with festival visitors.

The festival starts its popular motorcycle and ATV racing on the ice that Saturday, and that activity — combined with Valentine’s Day falling on Saturday and a three-day President’s Day weekend — should provide a major shot in the arm for the resort village’s economy. That’s what the carnival was established to do back in 1961.

“It helps us pay the bills and get through to the summertime,” Duffy said.

The Winter Carnival draws people not just from the Capital Region, but from New York City, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, Duffy said — very much reflecting the same regions that provide most of Lake George’s summer visitors.

Each Saturday of the carnival features a bonfire on the beach at 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. fireworks.

Dogsled rides on the lake are also available each weekend for a fee.

Out on the lake, there will be 4-by-4 pickup truck racing Feb. 28 through March 1. And not all the fun and games are for big kids; there are plenty of children’s activities every weekend, as well.

All events, not surprisingly, are at least somewhat weather-dependent. But the risk of cancellations due to soft ice seems small. Duffy said ice formation is actually ahead of normal.