Skating on Canandaigua Lake

With the local schools on winter break, a few people ventured outside to enjoy an afternoon of sunshine in the Finger Lakes. I’m sure that it was the warmth of the beautiful February sun that drew these youngsters and their mother out onto the Canandaigua Lake ice. I’m amazed at how well these youngsters can skate. Note the small boy who is "skating" in his boots.

Nearby, a few teenagers were playing hockey on another snow cleared section behind Kershaw Park. They were using a couple of plastic milk baskets for the goals.

Ice Hockey at Kershaw Park

We used to play ice hockey on the neighbor’s pond just down the road. We didn’t have any ice skates. We would clear the snow from a section of the pond and just “skate” on the ice in our shoes. Shoes were different then – they had stiff leather soles. A couple of fallen crooked willow branches served as hockey sticks and a small chunk of wood became the puck. It didn’t matter to us if we had any hockey equipment or not. It was the game and the competition that mattered.

Even with all of the sports equipment and insulated clothing available today, I see few and fewer children playing outside and enjoying the winter or winter sports. Too bad as it’s the game that counts, not the equipment!

James R. Bupp