Blether

It was an exceptional Kilt Skate season especially coming off of the pandemic. For the first time ever the Great Canadian Kilt Skate spanned coast to coat from A to V: Antigonish to Vancouver.

It’s less than 200 km from ‘Montreal to Ottawa  where the Scottish Society of Ottawa conducted our 9th Annual Great Canadian Kilt Skate at Lansdowne Park outdoor skate rink.

Wow we have to go right around the great lakes 2173 kms to reach our next kilt skate community in Winnipeg. Canada is a big place! And Winnipeg is a big kilt skate town and a founding community of Great Canadian Kilt Skate in 2015.

This year, independent of each other and on the same date (February 18, 2023), two first-time kilt skate cities Quebec City, QC, and Vancouver BC — returned to the original kilt skate idea: hold it at night as a party primarily for adults.

On February 26, 2023, the pent-up demand was finally released and an estimated 150 people showed up at the Centre Wellington Sportsplex to celebrate with bare knees and ice Scotland’s contribution to Canada.

This year, the conditions were just right, and Winnipeggers showed their appreciation by coming out in numbers to the skating rink at Riley Family Duck Pond in Assiniboine Park.

The first annual Vancouver Kilt Skate was held at the Shipyards Rink in North Vancouver  February 18, 2023. And now the Great Canadian Kilt Skate is coast to coast from A to V: Antigonish to Vancouver.

The first annual Quebec City Kilt Skate was held at the Anneau Rink on the historic Plains of Abraham February 18, 2023. It was planned as an adult oriented event starting in the early evening.

There’s strong Scottish traditions throughout the Ottawa Valley and no surprise that kilt skating has been taken up as a unique way to celebrate Scotland’s contribution to Canada.

On Sunday February 19th the Scottish Society of Ottawa conducted our 9th Annual Great Canadian Kilt Skate at Lansdowne Park outdoor skate rink.

This year, Moncton made the Great Canadian Kilt Skate part of the celebrations of its first-ever Polar Fest/Festipolaire — a winter festival at Centennial Park during the Family Day weekend.

Nova Scotia: Latin for “New Scotland.” A fertile ground (rink?) for a kilt skate, you’d think. And you’d be right!

After the Covid pandemic forced cancellation of the 2021 and 2022 events, the Great Canadian Kilt Skate returned to Calgary in 2023 with a blast. A blast of bagpipes…And a Chinook Blast as the Calgary kilt skate took its place among the festivities of Calgary’s new winter festival.

It’s only mid-February but in parts of Canada, Spring is already on the way. In Brampton Ontario’s Gage Park, the ice of the Outdoor Skating Recreation Trail contrasts with the grass as the snow banks recedes. On a day like this, a person can skate without fear of frostbite.

The weather patterns this winter have been…unpredictable. But for the second straight year, Concord, New Hampshire, has lucked onto the perfect day for a skate on a frozen pond.