With the arrival of cold winter weather, Westchester residents can enjoy excellent outdoor winter recreational activities close to home at a variety of locations throughout the county that provide ideal opportunities for skiing, ice skating and sledding. Residents must bring their own equipment; no rentals are available (except at Playland Ice Casino). All sports are permitted seven days a week during daylight hours only except where otherwise noted.

Ice skating is permitted at the following locations, weather permitting. Ice is checked daily at all locations; look for a “Skating Today” sign posted which indicates safe conditions for that day:

• Blue Mountain Reservation, Welcher Avenue, Peekskill
• Wampus Pond, Route 128, Armonk
• Mountain lakes Park, Hawley Road, North Salem
• Bronxville Lake along the Bronx River Parkway
• Twin Lakes, California Road, Eastchester
• Willson’s Woods Park, East Lincoln Avenue, Mount Vernon
• Tibbetts Brook Park, Midland Avenue, Yonkers

When snow cover allows, cross-country skiing will be allowed at the following locations:

• Blue Mountain Reservation, Welcher Avenue, Peekskill
• Croton Gorge, Route 129, Cortlandt
• Croton Point Park, Croton Point Avenue, Croton-on-Hudson
• Kitchawan Preserve, Route 134, Yorktown
• Lasdon Park, Arboretum and Veterans Memorial,* Route 35, Somers
• Mohansic Golf Course, Baldwin Road off Taconic Parkway, Yorktown Heights
• Ward Pound Ridge Reservation, Routes 35 and 121 South, Cross River
• Cranberry Lake Preserve, Old Orchard Street off Route 22, North White Plains
• Maple Moor Golf Course, North Street, White Plains
• Marshlands Conservancy, Route 1, Rye
• The trails at Merestead, Byram Lake Road, Mount Kisco
• Saxon Woods Park, Mamaroneck Avenue, White Plains
• Saxon Woods Golf Course, Mamaroneck Road, Scarsdale
• Dunwoodie Golf Course, Wasylenko Lane off Yonkers Avenue, Yonkers
• Lenoir Preserve, Dudley Street off North Broadway, Yonkers
• Sprain Lake Golf Course, Grassy Sprain Road, Yonkers
• Tibbetts Brook Park, Midland Avenue, Yonkers

When snow cover allows, sledding is permitted at Croton Gorge, Lasdon ParkOpen (8 a.m. - 4 p.m. only), Ward Pound Ridge Reservation in Cross River and Dunwoodie, Sprain Lake, Saxon Woods, Mohansic and Maple Moor golf courses.

To check on skiing and skating conditions by telephone weekdays, call the Westchester County Parks information hotline at (914) 864-PARK or go to www.westchestergov.com/parks. Weekends, call the parks directly at the numbers listed in the blue pages of your telephone directory.

Indoor ice skating and skate rentals are available at the three-rink, climate-controlled Playland Ice Casino at Playland Park in Rye. For more information, call Playland at (914) 813-7059.

For a winter calendar of events, call the Parks Department at (914) 864-PARK or go to www.westchestergov.com/parks. All winter activities in county parks are part of “BeFit Westchester,” a county-wide effort to get people to eat smarter and play harder every day. For more information about BeFit, go to www.westchestergov.com/fitness.