Nottingham Lake Waits on the Cold. This November, Avon's Skaters Have Somewhere Else to Go.

"Natural‑ice rinks require sustained cold periods in order to create safe and dependable ice. Unfortunately, this year, the weather hasn't given us the window we need." That was Avon Recreation Director Michael Labagh in a February 5, 2026 Town of Avon release announcing that Nottingham Lake would not open for skating last winter.

The same release also ended Avon's use of temporary rinks on its athletic fields as a standard backup. Skating in town now depends on the weather alone. Harry A. Nottingham Park gets ice only in a cold winter, and in every other winter the nearest reliable skating is in Eagle, Vail or Beaver Creek. For this season, the good news is that the Vail rink is about to reopen.

The lake has a number it has to hit

Avon brought skating back to Nottingham Lake in 2020 and wrote safety standards for it at the same time. According to the Town's release, the rules work in two stages:

• At least 6 inches of consistent ice across the full rink area before staff can begin conditioning the surface
• A minimum of 10 inches of black ice before the rink opens to the public

Last winter never came close. Measurements at the end of January 2026 showed three to four inches of white ice under several inches of snow and slush, and the Town asked people to keep themselves and their pets off the lake entirely.

When the lake does freeze well, the season is short and starts late. For 2023–24, the Town targeted a January 8 opening, depending on weather, with 4 to 8 p.m. daily hours through early March. For 2024–25, the target moved up to December 26, and the Town's rink status notice shows that season closed on February 19, 2025. Even in a good year, then, the lake gives Avon roughly two months of evening skating, starting after the holidays.

The backup plan is gone

In the decade before 2020, when the lake wasn't used for skating, Avon built temporary rinks on the upper athletic field and on the west lawn at the Avon Recreation Center. The February release retired that approach as a standard alternative because of long-term damage to turf that gets heavy use the rest of the year.

The Town says it still plans to offer skating on Nottingham Lake in future years and will keep tracking weather and ice depth to build a long-term operating plan. It has not yet set a date or plan for 2026–27. So for anyone in Avon who wants skating on the calendar, whether that's a standing family session, a lesson block or a hockey night, the dependable options this winter are outside town limits.

Last winter, the valley's indoor ice was thin too

A warm year at the lake hit harder in 2025–26 because Vail's Dobson Arena was also closed. Renovation started in April 2025, according to the Town of Vail. The Vail Daily reported the closure that spring and asked where the displaced skaters would go.

Much of the answer was the Rodeo Rink, a temporary sheet at the Eagle County Fairgrounds. The Vail Mountaineers say it served more than 1,500 local skaters across youth hockey, figure skating, adult leagues and public skating in 2025–26. The club's June 2026 update says the rink has since been taken down. In May, the Vail Daily reported that getting it ready for another season would cost about $200,000.

In practice, the Rodeo Rink's job is ending because Dobson is reopening.

Dobson's November, in order

The renovated arena keeps the roof structure that came up most often in public comments and adds new south and west entries, south seating stands, a wraparound concourse and mezzanine, more concessions, more bathrooms and locker rooms, and concert rigging. Capacity rises to 1,500 for hockey and 3,500 for concerts. The Town puts the total project cost at about $55.4 million, mostly from $48.8 million through the Vail Reinvestment Authority. Populous designed it, Hyder/McHugh Construction is building it, and the new logo comes from Edwards-based 970 Design.

As of the Vail Daily's September 9 update, the opening schedule was still in place:

1. November 3: A ribbon cutting was planned as the public reopening in the Town's June planning memo.
2. November 6–8: The Vail Sportsmanship Hockey Tournament's 14U/Bantam A division plays the first games, split between Dobson and Eagle.
3. November 7: A Vail Yeti home game is part of opening weekend.
4. Week of November 9: Vail Recreation District's fall adult leagues return to Dobson, with games starting at 9 p.m. or later. The district's posted schedule runs through mid-December, so confirm game nights with VRD.
5. November 28: Trampled By Turtles, Old Crow Medicine Show and Lindsay Lou Trio play the arena's first concert. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and the show starts at 6 p.m. Discover Vail lists tickets at $20 plus fees.
6. November 29: A free community open house with open skating. The Town's June memo also mentions food, drinks and activities. No start time has been posted yet.

The free November 29 skate falls three days after Avon's own Thanksgiving tradition, the Avon Turkey Trot, on November 26 at Harry A. Nottingham Park, 1 Lake Street. The event runs from 8:30 to 11 a.m., and the race starts at 9:30 a.m. The 2K costs $10, the 5K costs $20, children 5 and under run free, and part of the proceeds go to YouthPower365. Even without ice, the park is where Avon's holiday week begins.

Regular public skating at Dobson hasn't been scheduled yet. As of this week, the Vail Recreation District's public skating page still says 2026–27 information is "coming soon."

Eagle is the rink running right now

Until Dobson opens, Mountain Recreation's Eagle Pool & Ice Rink is the valley's indoor ice. Its October calendar includes midweek public skate sessions, such as October 15 from 2:30 to 3:45 p.m. and October 16 from noon to 2:15 p.m., along with Learn to Skate lessons and Vail Skate Club practices in the evenings.

The rink also hosts its own weekend of the Sportsmanship Tournament. The 14U/Bantam B division plays in Eagle from October 30 to November 1. The later divisions are split between both rinks: 12U/PeeWee from November 13 to 15 and 10U/Squirt from November 20 to 22. The Vail Mountaineers say their 2026–27 club is buying ice in both Eagle and Vail. So Eagle remains part of the schedule after Dobson reopens.

Four sheets of ice, four different calendars

The rink that works best from Avon depends on the month. Eagle covers October and early November. Dobson takes over in Vail from its November reopening. Beaver Creek's village rink, the closest to Avon, adds outdoor skating starting around its posted November 23 opening and running past the point when lake ice is likely.

Mountain Recreation hasn't posted a newer price list than its 2025 card, so confirm rates at the front desk. Beaver Creek's skating page lists daily hours of noon to 9 p.m. and the November-to-April window, but those dates aren't tied to a specific year, so check before driving up the hill.

Nottingham Lake's chances still come down to Labagh's line about sustained cold. The past two seasons give a rough benchmark: a good year means a late-December or early-January start and a close sometime in February or March. Until the lake reaches 10 inches of black ice, Avon's skating happens in Eagle, Vail and Beaver Creek.

Ben spent years teaching skiing in this valley and pays attention to how winter actually plays out from one Avon street to the next. That includes which homes sit a short walk from Nottingham Park and which ones make a midweek drive to Eagle easy. If you're wondering how location like that affects your home's value this season, Ben Finn can help. Get a Complimentary Home Valuation.