It doesn’t take a master sleuth to figure out why people are braving the winter prairie winds and snow to flock to a field south of Winnipeg. Bright white walls on a flat field hold within a wintry puzzle, the world’s largest snow maze.

The 2,789-metre-squared snow maze located about 30 km south of Manitoba’s capital in St. Adolphe achieved the Guinness World Record honour during its first season open last winter.
Owner Clint Masse says the sections of wall are two feet wide and more than six feet tall. They appear almost as thick and dense as the walls surrounding medieval castles.
“It’s crazy,” Masse admits with a laugh.

“I think every eight foot of wall we needed about four cubic yards of snow packed.”
Even when the cold wind howls outside, Masse said the height and density of the walls keep people warm as they feel their way through.

Dressed in their winter finest – snow pants, boots, toques and mittens – around 20,000 people made their way down the paths, into dead ends and finally out the exit of the maze during the first year.

The maze is built on top of the Masse family’s other big summer attraction – A Maze in Corn. The giant corn maze, hay bale pyramid and petting zoo have been running on the family’s property for more than 20 years. They also have added zip lines and a haunted forest.

In Manitoba, people are always looking for a way to get outside while staying warm once the temperatures drop, Masse said. A colleague told him about a different snow maze in Thunder Bay and he figured, with a corn maze already established, it would be a natural transition.
Masse decided if he was going to do it, he’d do it big. Before the snow began to fall, he contacted Guinness.

First the maze was designed. Then, Masse said, once the snow came crews used concrete-forming tools, tractors and a snow maker to start forming the walls.

People focused solely on getting to the end take about 20 to 30 minutes to exit the maze. Those who get turned about or are just having a lot of fun inside will be in there a lot longer.
This year Masse also added a large snow hill for sliding down and a gigantic igloo where people can get coffee, hot chocolate and hot toddies.

Masse said they’ve had visitors from all over Canada and the United States who have come to the area specifically for the magic of being in a snow maze.

The snow maze is open January, February and part of March (weather permitting).