GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) – Grand Rapids’ World of Winter wraps up Saturday with three events capping the two-month-long winter festival downtown.
The Great Lakes Snow Snake Competition, organized by the Grand River Bands of Ottawa Indians, opens the day at Sixth Street Park at 11 a.m. Competitors slide handmade “snow snakes” down a long snow trough — the farthest throw wins. Age-based brackets run from 5-and-under to 55-plus, with a $500 grand prize awarded to the top overall thrower. The event runs through 5 p.m.
At Rosa Parks Circle, the Human Hungry Hippo Tournament is set to begin at 12:30 p.m. Registration is sold out, but spectators are welcome to watch as six-person teams race across the ice in sleds, scooping up as many balls as possible. An awards party will follow at the Atrium at Uccello’s at 5:30 p.m.
World of Winter events resume as snow pauses
The festival closes with Abby’s Hand-Drawn Photo Booth outside the Grand Rapids Art Museum’s front entrance. Local illustrator Abby Haywood will sketch free live portraits from inside a shipping container from 1 to 4 p.m. No registration is required — it’s first come, first served…