Chilly temperatures over the past few days mean only one thing: The 100-day countdown to the 2025 St. Paul Winter Carnival has begun, and icy King Boreas is gearing up for the cold season.

The 2025 carnival — its 139th anniversary — is set to run Thursday, Jan. 23, through Sunday, Feb. 2, though most concluding events take place Saturday, Feb. 1. The carnival, whose fantasy legend sees the wintry king and his royal family do battle with the fiery Vulcans for control of the seasons, bills itself as the oldest winter festival in the United States.

Speaking of the legend, if you’re interested in joining the Royal Family, applications are open now at wintercarnival.com/get-involved/royalty/.

As always, we’ll bundle up starting in the new year for full Winter Carnival coverage (an article avalanche, if you will). But for now, carnival organizers have announced several new and updated events:

Parade moves: The Grande Day Parade, the first of the carnival’s two parades, is moving to Grand Avenue. Seems appropriate! Beginning at 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 25, the new route starts at Dale Street and proceeds westward to Lexington Avenue. The move is thanks to a new partnership between the carnival and the Grand Avenue Business Association, also the group behind summer’s Grand Old Day, and the parade is presented by Russell’s Saint Paul and the Saint Paul Area Association of Realtors.

The Vulcan Victory Torchlight Parade, a nighttime event during the carnival’s final weekend, follows the same route as last year, from the corner of W. 7th Street and N. Smith Ave. to Rice Park.

(If you haven’t been to the carnival in a few years, please note that neither parade now follows the same route it did before the pandemic.)

Rice Park becomes “Ice Park”: Ice-carving competitions will still take place in Rice Park as usual, but carnival organizers are planning to fill the park with many other frozen sculptures and “icy cool activities.” Details to come.

Three new outdoors events: The “Slow Snow Glow,” a casual winter bike ride on Saturday, Jan. 25, starting at Hallie Q.  Brown Community Center, and free walk-up snowboarding on Sunday, Jan. 26, at Battle Creek Regional Park, are both presented alongside Melanin in Motion, an initiative of the Cultural Wellness Center. Plus, Winter Play Day is set to take place Jan. 25 at Crosby Farm, hosted by a variety of organizations including Great River Passage Conservancy, City of Saint Paul, U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service and Mississippi Park Connection.

A puzzling expansion: The carnival’s jigsaw puzzle competition, already among the country’s largest and oldest, will now take place over two days, rather than one, with several additional competitive categories. This year’s extravaganza is presented by AARP and takes place Jan. 25 and 26 at Union Depot.

Be a globetrotter: During this carnival, Kids & Family Day will be themed “Around The World In A Day,” with local cultural groups sharing their “talents, treasures and tastes.” For those of us still mourning the loss of the Festival of Nations, this is — uh, how do you say “very exciting” in every world language?

And some pre-Winter Carnival events for your calendar

Saturday, Dec. 7: Winter Carnival button unveiling; 5 p.m. at Union Depot.

Sunday, Dec. 15: “Saint Paul Christmas Cheer: An Andy & Bing Christmas” — a fundraiser for the 2025 carnival and The 30-Days Foundation, a nonprofit run by musician Mick Sterling. The event is a performance of classic Christmas albums with Sterling, other singers and a 17-piece orchestra; 3–6 p.m. at Saint Paul Event Center, 400 Wabasha St. Tickets at wintercarnival.com/event/saint-paul-christmas-cheer/.

Wednesday, Jan. 8: Klondike Kate contest; 6 p.m. at Inwood Oakes Event Center, 484 Inwood Ave N, Oakdale. More info available closer to the event at klondikekates.org.

Starting Sunday, Jan. 19: Pioneer Press Treasure Hunt: You know what it’s all about. Once again, $10,000 is on the line for solvers of our calculatingly complex and cleverly circumlocutory clues. We’ll be back in a few months with more details.