ENFIELD — After a year’s hiatus, a nonprofit organization has a plan in place to plow ice skating loops on Mascoma Lake this winter.
The Mascoma Lake Skating Association announced in mid-December that it had made an arrangement with Troy Lowery for his White River Junction-based Lowery Property Services to plow rinks and skating loops on the lake, located in Enfield and Lebanon.
The organization hopes the loops will be ready in the middle of this month, once the ice is thick enough for the plowing equipment to be used safely, Bridget Labrie, director of community relations for the all-volunteer organization, wrote in an email.
“Our mission is to offer outdoor recreation for the public,” Labrie wrote. “We are at the mercy of Mother Nature but we all share the same joy in seeing people out on the ice with smiles on their faces.”
Once the loops are plowed, they will be accessible from the Mascoma Lake Boat Launch, located on 253 Route 4A and from Shakoma Beach, which is across the street on the corner of Main Street and Route 4A in Enfield. Skaters can park in a lot on the opposite side of Route 4A and there is a crosswalk that leads from the lot to the beach.
In spring 2024, the Mascoma Lake Skating Association announced it would stop accepting donations to maintain the loops. It had been difficult for the organization, which was founded in 2020, to find someone to plow. The challenge was compounded by unreliable ice due to warmer winters.
“We are hoping that the weather will cooperate and we can help put skating options on the lake again this year,” Labrie wrote.
Ice condition updates will be posted to the organization’s Facebook page, facebook.com/MascomaLakeSkating and its website mascomalakeskatingassociation.com, where people can also sign up for a newsletter.
Ice skating on Lake Morey
For the second winter in a row, the town of Fairlee will be responsible for the roughly 4-mile ice skating trail on Lake Morey. The town stepped in to provide the coverage needed to keep the trail going last winter after Lake Morey Resort’s insurance provider said it would no longer support the trail.
Conditions will be posted to the town’s website at fairleevt.gov/lakemorey.
Skating in Hanover
Dartmouth College will not have an outdoor rink on the Dartmouth Green this winter.
“It proved a little too logistically challenging to maintain given the unpredictable temperatures the last few years,” Jana Barnello, a Dartmouth spokeswoman, wrote in an email.
The college will maintain the ice at Occom Pond (Rope Ferry Road) for ice skating. Conditions will be posted at outdoors.dartmouth.edu.
Outdoor rinks
These are rinks that are set up on solid ground then filled with water to create skating rinks. Be sure to check conditions before going and pay attention to rules posted. The rinks are generally free to use, but some organizers accept donations to put toward maintenance. Some have rental equipment available, but the majority do not and skating is at your own risk.
This list will be updated throughout the winter. Email additions and updates to calendar@vnews.com.
Bradford, Vt.: Elizabeth’s Park, 464 Fairground Road. Maintained by Bradford Parks and Recreation Department. facebook.com/BradfordParksandRecreation.
Lebanon: Pat Walsh Park, Bank Street Extension. Skates available to borrow. Open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., weather permitting. lebanonnh.gov/1918/Pat-Walsh-Ice-Rinks.
New London: Bob Andrews Memorial Ice Rink, Main Street. Open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. Maintained by the New London Recreation Department and volunteers. nl-nh.com/rec.
Newport: Newport Golf Course, 112 Unity Road. Newport Recreation Department: 603-863-1332 or recreation@newportnh.gov.
Plainfield: Cory Tabor Park, 1094 Route 12A (near the Community Baptist Church). 603-675-6501.
South Royalton: South Royalton Green, Chelsea Street. Facebook: “Royalton Recreation Commission.”
Sunapee: Veterans Field, 563 Route 11. Maintained by the Sunapee Recreation Department. Ice conditions posted at sunapeenh.gov/news.
Vershire: Vershire Town Center, 27 Vershire Center Road. Rink open when temperature is below 32 degrees and the rink lights will be on until 10 p.m. Hosted by the Vershire Recreational Committee. vershirevt.org/recreation.
Wilder: Frost Park, 130 South St. Maintained by Hartford Parks and Recreation Department. hartfordvt.myrec.com.
Windsor: Town Common, across from the Windsor Public Library, 43 State St. Maintained by the Windsor Recreation Department. 802-674-6783.
Woodstock: Vail Field Skating Rink, 40 South St. Facebook: “Vail Field Skating Rink.”
Indoor rinks
West Lebanon: James W. Campion Rink, 394 N. Main St. Monday and Thursday, noon to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. Friday, 10:20 to 11:50 a.m. Open through mid-March. Adults, $7; children and seniors, $6. Skate rentals, $5. Skate sharpening, $8. campionrink.org or 603-643-1222.
White River Junction: Wendell A. Barwood Arena, 431 Highland Ave. Public skating Saturday, 4:15 to 5:45 p.m. through Feb. 28. Sunday, 3 to 4:15 p.m.. through March 8. $5 per person. Skate rentals and sharpening available for $5. Additional dates and information posted at hartfordvt.myrec.com.
Woodstock: Union Arena Community Center, 80 Amsden Way. Wednesday, 2 to 3:40 p.m. Friday, 2 to 3 p.m. Sunday, 12:10 to 1:20 p.m. Open through mid-March. Adults, (ages 13 & up) $8; youth (ages 4 to 12), $6; seniors (ages 60+ ), $5; children (ages 3 and under) and “super seniors” (ages 70+), free. Skate rentals, $7. Skate sharpening, $8. unionarena.net.