Hikers make rare visit to ice caves of Lake Superior

CORNUCOPIA, Wis. -- Each step is a challenge for the thousands making the mile-long hike across ice to an isolated stretch of coastline on Lake Superior.

The reward: Caves seem to be covered in crystal and icicles dangle from cliffs two stories high.

The one-billion-year-old sandstone is full of cracks. Lake water seeped in and froze on the walls and ceilings. James Fuchs has come twice from Shoreview, Minn.

"It's unique to see water in so many different forms and different colors and the way it's sculpted," he says. "It's just incredible. You couldn't dream this up. You couldn’t have a mind's eye to almost create this. You have to come and see it."

Winter access to the caves is only possible when the ice is thick enough to safely walk on. Conditions haven’t been right for this to happen in five years, and some fear the unusual event could become even rarer.

But for those lucky enough to enjoy this year's show, it's a moment frozen in time.

"It's in my mind," Fuchs says. "I won't forget this, it's too special."

A spectacle that ends when winter finally begins its surrender to spring.