Contact(s)
The City of Orillia operates nine free outdoor skating rinks throughout the city that are open in the winter depending upon the weather. Hockey games are prohibited on outdoor rinks when they are occupied by pleasure skaters. Skaters should wear helmets at all times. The Parks, Recreation and Culture Department maintains the rinks and questions can be addressed by contacting them at 705-329-7250.
Up-To-Date Conditions
Staff work hard to prepare the outdoor rinks for your enjoyment. Please stay off the rinks if they are marked closed below to ensure damage is not done to the bases. Staff will continue to work on them daily as weather permits. Please note that rink dimensions are approximate.
Please note that we generally do not update this page every single day if the statuses have not changed. If there is a change, we update as soon as possible between Monday and Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Updated: Wednesday, March 13, 2019 at 8:54 a.m.
|
Location |
Status |
Rink Dimensions |
| Couchiching Beach Park | Closed | Varies per year |
| Clayt French Park | Closed | 95 ft. x 65 ft. |
| First Baptist Church | Closed | 50 ft. x 90 ft. |
| Hillcrest Park | Closed | 120 ft. x 55 ft. |
| Homewood Park Large Rink | Closed | 110 ft. x 90 ft. |
| Homewood Park Small Rink | Closed | 100 ft. x 60 ft. |
| Kitchener Park | Closed | 180 ft. x 85 ft. |
| McKinnell Square Park | Closed | 50 ft. x 65 ft. |
| Murray Street Park | Closed | 60 ft. x 90 ft. |
When Do The Rinks Open?
The opening of outdoor rinks is dependent on the weather. In order to form a base from which staff can flood, we require a significant amount of snow that contains more moisture in order to pack them, followed by consistently cold weather (-10°C or below) for at least a week. Staff constantly monitor the weather conditions and when they are favourable, they try to flood the outdoor rinks.
Maintenance
Please note that maintenance occurs daily depending on snow fall. After a snow fall, staff has to clear the snow and flood them as time permits. Staff start that routine daily at 7:00 a.m. and depending on the amount of snow it takes about five hours to complete.
Lighting
The Hillcrest Park outdoor rink has lighting that can be turned on by pushing the button on the post near the large white container. The lighting goes off between 10:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. for the night. All other parks have ambient lighting within the park but not lighting specifically for outdoor ice rink night usage.
