Farming Ice, Growing Community: Kona Hills Wins People’s Choice at Pitch & Pine
A Big Idea from a Small Campground
This fall, we had the honor of taking part in the Pitch & Pine Business Competition, hosted by the Grove Community Incubator at the 2025 Michigan Outdoor Summit in Traverse City. The event featured 10 outdoor-minded innovators and entrepreneurs from across Michigan who pitched their ideas through real conversations, hands-on demos, and community connection.
For us at Kona Hills, it was a chance to share a project that’s been quietly brewing behind the scenes: the creation of the UP’s first man-made ice park. We’re partnering with Cryoculture Ice Farming, a UP-based company specializing in ice climbing, guided tours, and training, to bring this vision to life.
And — we’re thrilled to share — Kona Hills won the People’s Choice Award!
What We Pitched
Our presentation, titled “Farming Ice: Building the UP’s First Man-Made Ice Park,” focused on turning the historic Harvey Quarry — a 200-foot sheer rock wall located right across from Lake Superior — into a winter climbing destination unlike anything else in Michigan.
The concept draws inspiration from communities like Ouray, Colorado, and Winona, Minnesota, where seasonal ice parks have transformed their winter economies, created jobs, and brought thousands of climbers and spectators together each year.
Why We’re Doing It
At its heart, this project isn’t just about climbing. It’s about economic development, access, and community pride.
The ice park would extend Marquette County’s outdoor recreation season deep into winter — when tourism typically slows.
It would attract climbers, adventurers, and visitors who would stay, eat, and shop locally.
It would build on the UP’s growing reputation as a world-class climbing and adventure destination.
For Kona Hills, the ice park reflects what we care about most: using our land and creativity to strengthen the local outdoor economy in a sustainable, community-driven way.
Ice Farming is not new, it’s a proven economic development driver. Previous efforts to establish an ice park in the UP have failed. Kona Hills is ready to make this reality. We have the missing piece: a venue.
A Community Effort from the Start
The Pitch & Pine event wasn’t just a competition — it was a room full of passionate people who believe in the UP’s future. From small businesses to innovators and creatives, everyone shared ideas rooted in the same thing: a deep love for this place.
We were blown away by the encouragement we received — and humbled to win the People’s Choice Award, which means the audience believed in our vision too.
That recognition gave us a boost of energy (and confidence!) to keep moving forward with early-stage planning, partnerships, and engineering concepts for the ice park.
What’s Next
We’re continuing to explore the feasibility of the project and work with local partners who share our passion for expanding outdoor recreation access. Our next steps include:
Developing a prototype ice farming system to test this winter.
Exploring funding and collaboration opportunities.
Continuing to share updates as the project takes shape.
As always, we’re committed to doing this the right way — slowly, sustainably, and with community input guiding every decision.
Gratitude
Huge thanks to the Pitch & Pine organizers, judges, and fellow presenters for creating space for local ideas to grow — and to everyone who voted for us. Special shoutout to Nick Beadleston, Executive Director of Grove Community Incubator for bringing this opportunity to light. You made this milestone possible!
We’re incredibly proud of how far Kona Hills has come — and even more excited about where we’re headed next.
People’s Choice Winner: Kona Hills. Overall Winner: Lectric Boil.
Pitching a place-based idea is tough. We put together this video to help show off Kona Hills and our vision.
The Kona Hills Campground serves as the foundation of our business model. With a proven concept under our belts, we can start developing more opportunities for outdoor recreation at Kona Hills for Marquette County and the Upper Peninsula.