Snow sculptors race against the sunshine at Lake Geneva's Winterfest

LAKE GENEVA, Wis. (CBS 58) – The temperatures may be warmer, but the 29th annual U.S Snow Sculpting Championships are underway.

Officials say they’re expecting more than 65,000 visitors.

The sounds and scrapes of the snow sculpting have been a familiar beat for Hugh McCaron.

“Getting down on your hands and knees and working on the ground,” said McCaron.

The sculptor has been competing at Lake Geneva’s Winterfest for 15 years.

“It’s just part of our winter routine at this point. We just come here to do this,” said McCaron.

It’s a hobby he picked up by pure luck from a stranger.

“A man was carving ice at the time, and he mentioned, ‘Would you like to snow carve with me?’” said McCaron.

This year, McCaron’s bringing freshwater fish to the mainland.

“Three sturgeons who have been around since the dinosaurs have been here,” said McCaron.

Now, these sturgeons have to survive something else – the heat.

“This is awful. Awful. Awful,” said McCaron.

Sunshine and warmer temperatures have been a wrench in these sculptors' plans.

“I was worried, I thought it was really going to be a disaster. It turned out really better than I thought it was going to,” said one visitor.

McCaron’s team has been sculpting late at night.

“It’s been very fascinating to see how they’re making the snow sculptures look exactly the way they're supposed to,” said visitor Sue Puhek.

He’s got hopes of beating the sunshine and maybe even a few competitors.