MISSOULA — It might not be a winter wonderland outside, but it always is inside Glacier Ice Rink, Missoula’s non-profit rink. On the ice, Missoula’s skaters, both new and experienced, are getting the most out of winter.
Dedicated skater Tim Doherty played hockey for years. Now, he still gets out on the ice.
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“I've been skating since I was 12, and that's 40 years ago now. How about that?” he said. “Because it's such a good social activity, wonderful workout, etc., etc. This year Glacier Ice Rink is 28 years old. I've been here since its inception and I plan on being here as long as I can.”
At the rink’s public skate time, there is no experience necessary. Seven-year-old Haven started out on her skates for the first time on Tuesday. She already plans to keep skating.
“This is my first time,” she said. “It’s pretty fun.’”
Skaters like Doherty and Haven are a perfect example of who the rink is for, said Glacier Ice Rink executive director Laura Henning.
“It's kind of something for everybody. Like right now behind me, it's our family skate,” she said. “It’s really targeted toward beginners and families with young children, which is why the walkers are out there. And I think, to me, it's something for every age, every ability.”
The rink has family skate, senior skate and everything in between, along with all sorts of sports.
“We basically offer every kind of ice sport that you can do,” Henning said. “Youth hockey, adult hockey, curling, figure skating, public skating, sled hockey, sometimes broom ball.”
They also have events, like October’s “Spooky Skate” and Wednesday night’s “New Year’s Eve Theme Skate.” There are also plenty of events to look forward to in 2026.
“We try to do a theme skate once a month just for something fun to do and kind of just make it a little extra pizzazz,” Henning said.
Winter is the busiest season at the rink, but this year Henning said attendance is slightly down.
“We had our outdoor rink set up with trees and a snowbank in the middle. The problem was it's been so warm that the snowbank kind of melted toward the end, so it was more like an ice bank at the end,” she said. “People think about skating more when it's cold and snowy outside, and since it has not been cold and snowy, we've been down just a little bit.”
Still, the ice is busy and full of excitement. Henning said 2025’s public skates, January through December, saw 22,000 people hit the ice.
“Come out and skate. It's a fun activity. All ages, all abilities. We try to make it as affordable and accessible as we can to as a nonprofit,” she said. “We just want to be a good community resource and be really a social hub for Missoula.”
Doherty agreed that people should try out some ice time. He said skating has brought “absolute fulfillment” to his life.
“The Glacier Ice Rink being born, it allowed me to connect, reconnect with my childhood and I've been doing that ever since. All 28 years of its existence,“ he said. “You can learn to skate, you can become a figure skater, there's curling. There's all kinds of avenues to find your groove with the ice in this town.”
