Crowds of youngsters lined up for their turn at a sledding hill built in the heart of the downtown on Old Orchard Street, and volunteers from the community group OOB365 were on hand to groom the hill to make sure sledding was optimal.
The snow hill was built from snow trucked over from local parking lots by town crews and volunteers. Saturday morning brought rain, and sledding was delayed a few hours until noon so the steps to the platform could be sanded, said Sharri MacDonald, president of OOB365.
Some brought their own sleds, but for those who didn’t, there were plenty on hand to borrow for a slide.
“Did you see me go far?” asked 5-year-old Kiara Bradford of South Portland to her aunt, Rebecca Shaw, of Old Orchard Beach. Moments later, she ran up the hill to get her place in line to do it all over again.
“The kids love this stuff,” said Shaw.
As did some adults.
“It’s fun,” said Krystal David of Old Orchard Beach after descending the hill on a snow saucer. David, who works in the cafeteria at one of the local schools, said she enjoyed seeing some of the children from the school at the festival.
The Winter Carnival, which coincided with school vacation week, began Thursday with a Kids’ Carnival featuring a number of children’s games at Loranger Memorial School.
MacDonald said there were some out-of-staters at the events, including a family from Syracuse, New York, and it was also a way for locals to enjoy a “staycation” during the school break.
“Kids can have fun and make memories in Old Orchard,” she said.
Friday night brought about 600 people downtown to enjoy sledding, marshmallow roasting and hot chocolate.
Other activities Saturday included a character breakfast at J.J.’s Eatery Too, pony rides throughout the day, and a pub crawl in the evening.
— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or egotthelf@journaltribunecom.
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