Remember the quaint Currier & Ives prints of bundled-up gentlefolk gliding gracefully around ponds? There’s time-honored wisdom there. For one thing, the best way to fight cabin fever is to go out and play.
For another, ice skating is a terrific wintertime cardio workout that builds core and posterior-chain strength. It has lasting benefits for balance and proprioception, that sense of bodily awareness that gives us grace and ease. Best of all, gliding around on the ice is an absolute blast, a guaranteed mood booster. Once you get the rudiments down, an exhilaration akin to flight kicks in.
On a crisp perfect winter’s day, lots of Hudson Valley park ponds are open for skating. But if you haven’t skated in a while, or maybe ever, and you’d like the security of a freshly Zambonied rink, here are 6 Hudson Valley skating destinations where you’ll find the experts and equipment to get you out on the ice. (We also recently learned there is an ice rink in the works in Tivoli. More details soon.)
Bear Mountain Ice Rink
Palisades Parkway/Route 9W North, Bear Mountain
3020 Seven Lakes Drive, Tomkins Cove
(845) 786-2701 x266
Bear Mountain Ice Rink at Bear Mountain State Park is a fully accessible outdoor rink with a stunning view. Weather permitting, there are hour-and-a-half public skating sessions Fridays and Saturday from 10am to 9:30pm and Sunday till 7:30pm. Admission is $5, and skate rental or sharpening costs $10. Tickets are available exclusively onsite starting 45 minutes before the next session. Private skating, figure skating, and hockey lessons are available, and the rink is also home to Rockland Revolution Hockey Club. The rink, open through March 1, is outdoors, so dress accordingly.
Kiwanis Ice Arena
6 Small World Avenue, Saugerties, NY 12477
(845) 247-2590
The indoor Kiwanis Ice Arena in Saugerties features locker rooms, a party room, an off-ice training room, concession stand, and pro shop. There are public skate sessions seven days a week, but check their website as the schedule is apt to change to accomodate hockey and skate camps. The entrance is $12 per adult, $7 per students and seniors, and free for kids under $5. Rentals an accessible $3. On Friday and Saturday evenings, swing by for cosmic skate with disco lights and music. Kiwanis Ice Arena also hosts a robust hockey program with leagues, clinics, and drop-in sessions as well as being home to a figure skating club.
Mohonk Mountain House
1000 Mountain Rest Road, New Paltz, NY 12561
(845) 256-2775
Epic ridge-top resort Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz offers winter sports passes for $125 from January through March. This season pass allows you to rent equipment for ice skating, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and microspikes as well as giving access to the trails for hiking, skiing, and snowshoeing, the Mountain House, the Ice Skating Pavilion, Greenhouse, gift shop, and parking. If you’re not quite that committed, you can buy an ice skating day pass at $35 per person on weekdays and $45 on weekends and holidays. This gives you 90 minutes of time on the ice in Mohonk’s gorgeous open-air pavilion, plus access to over 30 miles of trails to explore on skis or snowshoes. A concession stand at the pavilion offers hot cocoa, coffee, and snacks.
Bonticou Rink
131 Millbrook School Road, Millbrook, NY 12545
(845) 677-5154 or (845) 677-8261 x118
Bonticou Rink at Millbrook School offers public skating on Sunday afternoon from 3-5pm, December 7 through February 19 for just $3 a person. You’ll need to bring your own skates, but they’ll sharpen them for you for $5. Want to celebrate on the ice? Bontecou Rink is also available for private parties at a rate of $200 an hour.
Tanners Lake
27 Lake Rd, Tannersville NY 12485
You’ll have to bring your own skates to Tanners Lake, this is more of a DIY winter adventure. But on the upside, it’s free and afterward you can warm up by the fireplace in the Tannersville BBQ boathouse with a $4 PBR or a margarita and a pulled pork sandwich. Hot chocolate is also available for the kiddos.
McCann Ice Arena
14 Civic Center Plaza, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
(845) 454-5800 Ext 1205
McCann Ice Arena at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center offers two-hour public skate sessions Friday through Sunday from 2-4pm ($15 adult, $10 for kids 13 and under, rentals included); DJ Skate Nights on Fridays; and instruction of all sorts for ages three and up at all skill levels. There are open hockey and figure skating freestyle sessions ($18), plus clinics, camps, special events, and a therapeutic skating program. The rink is home to more than a dozen adult and children hocken leagues. For $144 you can buy a 10-session freestyle pass for use at both the mcCann Ice Arena and Ice Time Sports Complex, of $560 for a 40-session pass.
Ice Time Sports Complex
21 Lakeside Road, Newburgh, NY 12550
(845) 567-0005
The Mid-Hudson Civic Center also operates the Ice Time Sports Complex in Newburgh, where you’ll find equally rich programming (plus speed skating) and similar public skating hours to McCann. Former Olympic and World-level competitor and Gilberto Viadana signed on last spring as Skating Director for the facilities, both of which feature pro shops, rentals and refreshments. IceTime is also home to the Mid-Hudson Polar Bears.
