My attempt to build a labyrinth failed, but I am going to keep mulling it over until I come up with a workable method and hopefully some collaborators. But, I did learn some interesting things about painting snow and thought the technique might appeal to some of you for other purposes.

My cupboard contained generic grape Kool-aid, generic red Kool-aid, and three containers of instant ice tea mix. Quick experimentation showed that the grape variety did not color snow very well. The red kind was nice and bright, but slightly gruesome or disturbing. Instant ice tea makes a nice rich brown color and has the advantage that since it doesn't have sugar mixed in, you don't risk making sticky clumps.

I found a relatively undisturbed patch of snow on a nearby baseball field and started sprinkling. It felt like sprinkling sand for a mandala and was fun to do. After completing a small labyrinth pattern, I concluded that (1) this was not big enough to be very interesting (2) the lines were not drawn in thickly enough for great visibility (3) the footsteps from painting the pattern are more visible than the pattern (4) undisturbed snow indicates an area with very little foot traffic, limiting the potential audience.

I was disappointed in the results, but at least I finally found something to do with the three containers of ice tea mix that had been in the cupboard for many years. And, I am hopeful that will more winter still to come, these snow painting tips may come in handy for someone else's tasking.