How to create a yard rink:
If you do not have a lake or a pond for your disposal, you still have the option of making a rink in your yard. The first step is to make the base. Find a somewhat level area. Lay down a tarp, and create a border out of 2x4s. You can now pull the tarp tight so there are no bumps, and then staple the tarp to the frame. Now you can flood the rink with a garden house, but make sure to keep the hose in a garage where the house is over freezing.
When to start an on-lake rink:
When to start creating a rink is the first question you must ask yourself. Option one is as soon as there is about five or six inches of ice, but this means you will need to shovel the rink by hand. If you wait until there is about a foot of ice, then you can bring a truck or four-wheeler with a plow and clear snow much easier and faster.
How to shovel:
I would strongly recommend wearing your ice skates to shovel. If you only wear boots, you will find it hard to get enough traction to push piles of snow. The first step is to shovel a straight path down the center of the ice rink. Then, go one shovel width wider each lap, but make sure to angle your shovel so snow is pushed towards the edge of the rink. For best results, have multiple people shovel at once, and create a train of people following behind each other.
Alternate Snow Clearing Methods:
Snow blowing is always a good option. The best strategy is to start the snowblower in the center of the ice rink and make your way towards the edge in increasingly bigger circles. If the rink is covered in fluffy enough snow, a leaf blower can also be used to clear the snow.
Below are some videos demonstrating these techniques along with instruction on how to flood and shovel your ice rink.
Enhancing your hockey possibilities:
If you are an avid hockey player, you may want to use actual hockey nets. After some research, we found a video that instructed us on how to create our own. below is the video explaining how to create your own.