Littleton couple make massive snow fort

LITTLETON, Maine — Nearly every child dreams of building the biggest, baddest snow fort they can come up with in the winter.
So when Angela Bertholdt and her boyfriend Tyler Schools set out to build the “ultimate” snow fort for their daughter, Ariah, what started out as a small castle turned into a massive snow fortress.
“It’s taken us about a month-and-a-half to build this,” Bertholdt said.
    The fort was constructed with blocks of frozen snow that were cut up with a handsaw and shovel. The couple broke five shovels in the process of building the fort, which features a tunnel 20-feet deep in one direction and a second tunnel that 15-feet deep to form an “L” shape.
There’s little danger of the structure collapsing, Bertholdt said as the walls are about five-feet thick.
“The kids have tried their best to demolish it, because that’s what kids tend to do,” Bertholdt said. “They’ve kicked it, beat it, but it’s not going anywhere.”
The fort comes complete with two benches for lounging and interior lighting for nighttime fun. Numerous bird feeders also adorn the sides of the structure.
Building snow structures is something the couple have enjoyed doing in recent years.
“We’ve done something each of the last three years,” she said. “Last year, we built a massive slide. This year, Tyler said ‘Let’s build a fort,’ and we just kept going and going.”
Passing motorists often stop to see the massive structure. Bertholdt said it’s not uncommon for two, three or even four vehicles to be parked outside their Carson Road home.
“Normally, when people notice it is at night,” she said. “We have it all lit up and people stop by just to check it out.”