An Orillia couple’s “COVID project” to keep them active during the pandemic has become more popular with the community than they could’ve imagined.
Reed and Helen Ellis usually head south during the winter, but, like many, they hunkered down at home this year. Around Christmas, they decided to start creating a rink on Lake Couchiching at Brewery Bay, near their home.
“We have a natural surface, so we undertook to create a rink for the community,” Reed said. “Through the holidays, it was so well used, especially by younger folks.”
Young people weren’t the only ones taking advantage of the rink, though. Reed noticed people of all ages coming out to skate or play hockey. Seniors, too, have been showing up — some to skate and some to watch others enjoying their time on the ice.
Seeing how popular it was becoming, the couple created a skate trail to provide another option for visitors.
They prepare the rink — which is about 100 by 75 feet in size — every morning, sometimes spending hours to flood it and fill pressure cracks.
“It gives us a good, healthy, outdoor activity. We enjoy being outside,” said Reed, who plays two-on-two hockey with friends once a week. “We’ve been pretty vigilant about not going places and not bringing people in, so this is a nice distraction that has a reward at the end.”
While he likes his ice time, it isn’t what he enjoys most about the rink.
“The rewarding part of it is how it’s been received by our whole community of Orillia,” he said.
A family that is new to Orillia went skating on the rink and thanked Reed, telling him how much they enjoyed it. The next day, the family returned and a 12-year-old girl handed Reed a thank-you note that included a drawing of “Reed’s rink.”
They also invited the couple to come to dinner once the pandemic is over.
“That was so special,” Reed said.
With a view of the rink from his home, he said people seem to be using it responsibly and adhering to physical distancing rules — something he hopes they continue to do.
The rink can be accessed from the Leacock Museum parking lot on Museum Drive.
