WINNIPEG -- One Selkirk, Man., resident's annual snow sculpture has become a neighbourhood tradition.

Carving his first sculpture back in 2007, Gord Amirault creates a snow masterpiece in his front yard every year.

"I've been doing it for so long that they all start guessing when they see the forms," said Amirault

This year's sculpture is a 9-foot tall and 24-foot long sphinx complete with a cave and a slide.

"I have a passion for Egypt, so this has been one that I've wanted to do for a while," he said.

Amirault started adding interactive elements like slides when he had kids three years ago.

"I like the fact that the kids have something to do outside," Amirault said. "It gives them an appreciation of the outdoors."

Being an avid woodcarver, he initially took inspiration from the snow sculptures at Festival du Voyageur.

The sphinx took Amirault six days to build: three days to make the block of snow and three days to carve.

He usually uses a sketch and plots the design on a graph, but this year he skipped that step.

With 15 sculptures under his belt, Amirault says every year presents a new challenge.

"Being the artist that did it, you see all the imperfections in it," he said. "I see a lot of things I would have like to have done differently."

Amirault encourages everyone to try their hand at sculpting.

"I always say, 'do it.' Don't be afraid of doing it or say it's too much work or that you can't do it," he said.

Of course, the sculptures do melt in the spring, but that doesn't bring down Amirault's spirits.

"It just gives you an opportunity to do it next year."