Snow Day Fort

On this snow day, I built a fort. To build my fort, I needed snow, sticks, and a piece of 2.5 x 2.5 plastic. First, I set out to get my plastic. I hit my local Job Lot and bought a 5 x 7 tarp.

However, my fort was going to be built to a 1/4 scale of a 10' x 10' size fort, so I was going to have to cut this tarp. My fort was going to be 2.5' x 2.5' so my tarp had to be cut to this size as well.

I started with an idea of what I wanted my fort to look like. I drew a quick sketch of what I wanted it to look like. My actual fort would be 1/4 of the dimensions I drew, so 10 ft would be 2.5 ft in my model and 5 ft would be 1.25 ft. 

After I cut my tarp, I began to create my fort. I started with a solid base that was a square 2.5' x 2.5' made out of snow. Since the snow was not packable or very workable for that matter, I used water to make the snow more packable. This would also freeze the snow almost immediately since it was 10 degrees outside and make the base very stable and hold firm in its place.

The bottom of the fort was a rock ground, which would be drier and warmer than a snow or grass ground. 

From there, I built up with snow until the walls were about 1.25 feet tall. I also added a door using a butter knife and my foot afterwards. 

Here is a quick tour of the walls. 

After that, I had to make a roof. To do this, I was going to use my tarp. This prevented any wind, snow, or rain from getting into my fort. To secure the tarp, I used holes that were already in it and cut holes in it where they were necessary. I used sticks I broke off of my moms nearby plant, stuck them in the holes, and stuck them into the snow walls. 

Here is a photo of my finished fort.