Vermont Lakes

Lake Memphremagog

Newport & Derby, Vermont
Magog, Québec

26,000 acres
51’ average depth
350’ maximum depth
Elevation 680 feet

There are only two places in New England where you can skate into Canada and back: Lake Champlain and Lake Memphremagog. I skated across the border on ‘Memphre’ in 2014 and again in 2023.
The 2014 event was organized by Phil White of Kingdom Games. Phil drove his pickup truck out onto the lake and plowed the snow off a 25-mile-long trail from the East Side Restaurant in Newport all the way to downtown Magog. Unfortunately, it snowed 6” the night before the event, so Phil had to go out at 6am and start plowing the trail again. The new snow was heavy and wet and it stuck to the plow blade, while the truck’s wheels lost traction on the smooth black ice, so Phil was hard-pressed to stay ahead of the two dozen intrepid skaters nipping at his heels. We ended up skating 22 miles on ice of varying qualities, and walking 3 miles through unplowed snow. Several skaters gave up and accepted rides from the volunteers patrolling the course on snowmobiles, but most of us continued under our own power. We all reunited for a celebratory brew at La Memphré Microbrasserie & Pub in Magog, where more volunteers were waiting to ferry us back to Newport in their cars. Phil’s invitation to the event is at the bottom of this page.
A quick note about border crossings. If you cross into Canada on the ice, it’s not necessary to clear US or Canadian Customs, provided that you stay on the ice at all times, and cross back into the US without going ashore on the Canadian side. There are unmanned checkpoints at the border, and you will be under video surveillance, so make sure to play by the rules.
Lake access in Newport is on the east shore at Prouty Beach or the East Side Restaurant, and on the west shore at the state-owned boat ramp at the end of Fishing Access Road. Downtown Magog has numerous beach access points from Magog Bay Park all the way to Pointe-Merry Park, as well as a paved lakeshore bike path that is Zambonied for ice skating when the weather is sufficiently cold.

Above: Skating past the foot of Owls Head in April 2023
Below: Invitation to the Great End-to-End Skate in February 2014

Lake Willoughby

Westmore, Vermont

1687 acres
185’ average depth
300’-340’ maximum depth
Elevation 1171 feet

One of the deepest lakes you’ll ever skate on - along with nearby Lake Massawippi in Québec - it’s a rarity to catch Willoughby with solid ice and no snow cover.
Framed by the sheer ice-climbing cliffs of Mount Pisgah and Mount Hor, Lake Willoughby resembles a landlocked Norwegian fjord, similar in shape (though not in size) to Lake George in New York’s Adirondacks.
The most reliable access to the ice is from the state park beach at the north end of the lake, or from the pull-off on Route 5A at the south end of the lake. The ice can sometimes be accessed near the general store in Westmore Village, or from the hiking trail that starts at the south end of the lake and heads north along the western shore.