Cold, Windy Weather Helping Outdoor Ice Rinks In Bangor

I'll be the first to admit that the recent cold snap and windy conditions haven't been the most fun thing that's happened in Maine, weather-wise lately. But those conditions have been helpful in one particular instance: making ice!

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For years, Bangor has had a handful of outdoor rinks that the City has tried to maintain at a couple of the local parks.

Bangor's Parks and Recreation Department Director, Tracy Willette, says while most of people have found the bitter cold temps and chilly winds to be annoying and downright painful at times, that kind of weather has also led to some pretty great ice-making conditions.

"Regarding the rink at Fairmount Park, Mother Nature has actually done the work for us so far this season. With the rain a few weeks ago and now the colder weather, it has set up for use on its own. We have a similar scenario at Stillwater Park."

Willette says that the Parks and Rec folks do their best to help keep the surface of the outdoor rinks as smooth as possible while it's cold outside, but the warmer weather that's arrived earlier each year has made things kind of tricky.

"We have tried maintaining outdoor rinks for quite a few years. However, with the changing weather during the winter, it has made that effort challenging. It doesn’t stay cold for long enough periods of time for us to maintain outdoor rinks on a regular basis as we once did. We do monitor conditions as they develop each winter. If there is a period of time where it makes sense for us to try, we do send a crew to try and make ice."

According to some folks who live in the neighborhoods where the rinks are located, these rinks are for all to use, but also for all to help care for.

We spoke with one neighbor who lives nearby the rink who says they hope folks who visit the area and use the ice for fun remember to respect the space so that can be used by everyone.

In the past, we're told there have been instances where people have walked across the rink surface when it's been too soft, ruining the smooth ice right before it freezes. There have also been examples of kids smashing the vulnerable spots and tossing the chunks onto the surface to freeze, rendering the ice unsafe and unusable.

Overall, for everyone to be able to continue to use this space for outside fun, there needs to continue to be a collective effort to appreciate and respect these rinks, before they melt away on the next warm day.

Fingers crossed, we'll have some time to enjoy a lap or two around the rink before the ice melts.