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Ice Mountain Preserve
Ice Mountain
� Thomas Minney

Why You Should Visit
The primary feature of the preserve are the 60 small holes and openings at the base of a rock talus that accumulates and retains ice. Ice Mountain takes its name from an unusual geologic process that results in a natural refrigeration effect�cold air flowing out of the holes throughout the year. Producing the phenomenon is the accumulation of ice inside the mountain�s talus, a sloping mass of debris at the foot of the mountain from former rock outcroppings above.

The system appears to work like an open-top supermarket freezer. Dense, cold air sinks deep into the talus forming ice masses inside it in the colder months. As the weather turns warm, cooled air from the ice masses makes its way through the talus and out the ground vents. Because the system is so efficient, the ice only melts gradually and remains in the talus all year, even in the dog days of summer. A group of boreal plants grow around the cold air vents. The preserve also has high sandstone cliffs affording views of the surrounding area. There is an annual Ice Mountain Festival each June, hosted by the local families in North River Mills in cooperation with The Nature Conservancy.