Donald Wiklund and Cloudcroft Ice Rink’s Final Natural Season
Cloudcroft’s James Sewell Ice Rink is seeing the end of an era: its last season as a natural, outdoor rink is at hand, closing a unique chapter in New Mexico’s winter traditions.
Through a recent interview with long-time lessee Donald Wiklund, the rink’s history, culture, and the sweat behind every skating day are coming into focus for one last winter season before the rink lease changes hands.
This article originally appeared in the November issue of the Mountain Monthly.
The Rink’s Special Place in Cloudcroft
The James Sewell Ice Rink has long been a rare, nostalgic draw for families across the Southwest.
Sitting at 8,650 feet in Cloudcroft’s centrally-located Zenith Park, it brings winter magic to a region where snow can be unreliable. As Wiklund put it, “This is the southernmost outdoor, all-natural [ice rink] in the United States. There’s something to be said about that.”
Twenty-Six Years of “Luck and Logic”
For nearly three decades, the Wiklund family kept the rink alive.
At the recent public hearing to adopt an ordinance for the new ice rink lease in the Village Chambers on October 1st, Donald recalled, “I’ve been doing this for 26 years... I just want a fair chance at this.”
He described the hard-earned wisdom behind tending natural ice: “It’s a lot of luck and logic, a lot of time too. You’re always checking for the soonest opportunity you can make ice… You kinda gotta know winter conditions and be up here a lot. Sometimes you get warm pockets that just show up late at night, so the ice won’t set up like you think it would.”
Laying natural ice, Donald explained, could mean working from 8 p.m. until morning, especially as the weather got trickier in recent years: “I found it really neat in my experience of making ice, the coldest time of the day is like 7 to 8 a.m... But just a lot of trial and error. Sometimes it could chip up, sometimes it flake up, sometimes it gets slushy. Like, you name all the different forms of ice—I’ve seen it. Even like Sonic ice!”
Donald’s family was not alone. Local employees and volunteers pitched in, with memories of late-night freezing and hurried maintenance so families could skate the next day.
“My employees, that’s probably the biggest cost... You just gotta pay them well. Not very many people want to be out in the cold.”
Wiklund and his predecessors passed the art of ice over time. “Originally, what they would do—when Mr. Booky actually had it—he’d get snow and compact it with his tractor, then throw water on it, and it would freeze over. As things got warmer, even the old tricks needed updating.” In recent years, spraying water in ultra-thin layers became the norm, hoping the next freeze would come early and stick.
The Rink’s Last Natural Season
This year is bittersweet.
“I want to make it fun, family-friendly,” Donald says.
“Man, the kids—the kids are awesome. It just reminds me of my time here. This place is special.”
Despite recent warm winters—the season sometimes shrank to just a couple of weeks—Donald is determined to give Cloudcroft one memorable last natural-ice run. He’s planning themed skate nights, live music, and that beloved community spirit still burning—including the annual popular ski-burning bonfire event, Ullr Fest.
“I just want to finish strong,” Donald says.
Passing the Torch with Hope
The future will bring change: the village council has adopted an ordinance paving the way for a new operator—Southwest Sports Solutions out of El Paso, owned and operated by Cloudcroft-connected Cory Herman— and refrigerated ice, with longer seasons in sight.
Donald’s words capture both nostalgia and hope: “I want to leave Cloudcroft in a good place. I’ve been doing this for a long time. It depends on the weather, and that’s something hard to control.”
But even as he prepares to step back, he is hopeful: “I’m just glad that winter sports are here, and I hope it continues to stay that way.”
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