It's Winter: Go Outside!

Great suggestions! I'll be there this afternoon, pumped to 'tube' the Skyway.

looking forward to seeing photo's posted...have fun guys!

I just came in from attending this festival and man was it crowded. Main Street and Downtown over-all....VIBRANT!!!! My only complaint is that I wish the local businesses (Restaurants and Cafe's) would have been open today and tomorrow. The HSBC Tower for example: BUSY with people coming in to view the Ice Maze and Scenery, BUT all the cafe's, including the news-stands were CLOSED!!! Didn't they get the memo or at least watch the News??? Would be nice if all the businesses near any event would be open, not everyone wants to eat from a tent or Pearl Street Brewery which of course had lines of people by noon. More options for eating please, next year.

Just got back, and in fact I have to go back tomorrow just to get into the maze. It's kinda what I expected, a little hectic, but fun. It's the first ever PK festival so I can't be too harsh. I'm hoping once this is done they can go back to work planning a bigger and better one for next year. Some suggestions: More food vendors. I saw one fried dough cart. Also I know they were unable to do it this year, but an ice rink is a must. They should also look into setting up a curling tournament. Sledding down the skyway looked fun, but it would also be cool if they could set up some toboggan hills elsewhere, I saw a lot of kids with sleds trying to sled near the roads. I know this wont happen, but man they need to try and get the city to clean the snow off the sidewalks. Also I didn't see much of a police/security guard presence, I'm sure it's going to get rowdy tonight.

I spent the afternoon at the Festival and I had a great time. It exceeded my expectations. I think the best part of the festival was seeing all the people. The kids were playing in the snow, families spending an afternoon together downtown, and so many volunteers! I think there were more than enough activities for all ages. In the spirit of winter and Buffalo, the city and Western new York celebrated for better or worse, our national identity; snow!

Tubing down the skyway looked really cool but I don't think the kids got much speed out of it. The horse and carriage rides were a great idea and lots of people took advantage of them. proximity to the pond hockey tournament led to having a large crowd of people. And I think the ice maze was the centerpiece of the Powder Keg Fest: it was beautiful. Although it was a long wait to get it, it was well wroth it.

All around, an exceptional afternoon!

Buffalo felt like a real city for once.

We went this afternoon and had a blast. Weather was great and the maze was cool. Tons of people down there!

Does anyone know if they had ice sculptures?
We looked for them but didn't see any...

fantastic event, kudos to the organizers! Our only suggestions are like the others - the surrounding businesses and cafes were closed, difficult to feed a family . There weren't schedules of events handy which had people confused but for a first time event- applause to all. Saw lots of folks bussing it in ... great for keeping downtown green!!

Certainly a good time. I would have liked a area to hang and have beers that was not under a tent, I mean its a winter festival, It would be nice to drink some beers in the element as opposed to under dark smoke filled tents.

Mass people downtown, in the dead of winter....thanks to the people of Labatt Pond Hockey who work hard & the Powder Keg. You brought this traffic that is not the norm so thank you!
All I and my friends can say is AWESOME..
We had a great time today!
Do people even know that Buffalo is hosting the World Junior Hockey Tournament at the end of the year? GET READY!

My husband and I spent a few hours at the festival yesterday and were amazed at what a group of people can do when they work together. Were there things I would have changed? Of course no event is ever perfect. There was a little something for everyone and I know the right people are involved to grow it next year. Maybe then I will get a chance to volunteer. I say hats off to all involved for a not only an excuse to be outside in the snow, in the city but for a job well done across the board.

I was at the festival for about 8 hours Saturday and had an amazing time. I didn't hear (or see) one negative thing all day long. Congratulations to Newell and Jeff and everybody else involved. Thank you so much for doing this. I promise to volunteer next year!

I went on Saturday morning and had a great time! I thought the ice maze was great, and loved the ice throne in the center.

The only critiques I can offer for next year are to have better wayfinding signage (I didn't even know about some of the events and activities until I came back home and looked at the website again), and better crowd control (the snowtubing line blocked off the Pearl/Seneca intersection, and the food tent line was a quite a bottleneck).

Overall, I was incredibly impressed at what these folks pulled off, and I look forward to an even greater festival next year!