After nearly a week of subzero temperatures, my sisters and I decided we would test the river at our house to see if it was solid enough to safely ice skate on. We walked around and stomped on the ice to listen for cracking, luckily we heard nothing. We were left with the task of shoveling off the snow that had accumulated the past few days. Although skating through the snow is enjoyable, hidden sticks and bumps are dangerous, and falling was not at the top of our list of things to do. We started shoveling the snow and, after a half hour, had a sizeable section of ice cleared. This was the beginning of our 2023 "Ice Skating on a River" experience.

Supplies

What you need:

a shovel
warm clothes and gloves
a blanket to sit on on the bank of the river
possibly a bucket full of water

Step 1: Shoveling

After testing the ice with your boots, (stomping around while carefully listening for hollow or cracking sounds) begin shoveling. If you are comfortable in skates, you may want to lace them up to shovel--it goes much faster. The shoveling may take a while, but don't get discouraged because the end result is worth every drop of sweat and shovel full of snow. Try to push the snow as close to the bank as possible to maximize your skating square footage.

Step 2: Smooth Ice

Once you have cleared an area, walk around in your boots to see if the ice is smooth enough to skate on. If the ice isn't as smooth as you want, get a bucket of water and dump it on the bumpy areas; the ice is cold enough to freeze the water and it will smooth out the bumps. Be sure to broom off sticks!

Step 3: Break Time

After the snow is all cleared and the ice is ready to skate on, take a minute to relax. Afterall, you've just done a bunch of shoveling. Sit on a blanket on the bank and catch your breath.