How to Make the Perfect Snow Brick

Put on your gloves. Trace out the area in the snow where you want to line up your bricks. That may be the perimeter of a fort, or simply an area where you'd like to build a snow wall.

Pick up a handful of snow in each hand, and pat it together to form a small snowball. Continue picking up snow and patting it into the ball until the ball is too large to hold comfortably.

Roll the snowball on the ground to pick up more snow, as though you were rolling a ball for a snowman. Pat the snow into the ball periodically to keep it as tightly packed as possible. Stop when the ball is large enough to squeeze into the cooler, but no larger.

Put the ball in the cooler. Add snow to the cooler. Fill in any gaps between the ball and the cooler's side, and keep trying to pack the snow as tightly to the ball as possible. Stop when the cooler is completely filled.

Carry the cooler to the line you made in the snow. Turn it upside down and allow the snow you packed inside to drop out of the cooler and onto the spot where you want to build your wall or fort. Knock the bottom of the cooler to dislodge the brick if necessary, but be gentle enough that you don't knock the brick apart. Remove the cooler and pat the brick to tighten the snow again. Drag a shovel gently along the top and sides of the brick to smooth the snow and shape the brick, which should be vertical on one side, and slanted like a hillside on the other side.

Fill the bucket with cold water. Gently pour the water over the brick. Allow the water to freeze, so the brick is slick and hard.