Sure, a lot of us miss summer, but the plummeting temperatures mean a lot of exciting things are ahead.

One of those things is the return of outdoor rink (ODR) season, a beloved tradition for many Canadians.

Photo Credit: Tristan MacLaggan

While it will still be a bit of a wait until local ponds freeze or outdoor sports courts can be flooded to make mini rinks, that wasn’t the case for some higher-elevation lakes this past weekend.

A stretch of cold weather meant Johnson Lake in Banff National Park froze over, allowing for people to strap on the skates at one of the most picturesque ODR spots in Canada.

It’s a beautiful enough location on its own, but a spectacular Sunday sunset made for some breathtaking scenes for a few that were lucky enough to be up there.

Canmore resident Tristan MacLaggan was one of those lucky few, and he caught a few amazing shots of the sunset up in the mountains.

Photo Credit: Tristan MacLaggan

He shared those photos to the Bow Valley Wild Ice Facebook group and his photos have since gone viral.

“Last night on Johnson was beyond epic for an early season skate, and the sunset was next level,” he explained.

Photo Credit: Tristan MacLaggan

Next level would be putting it lightly, as the sky was painted red, orange and blue, and it lit up the ice surface in those colours as well.

Anyone looking forward to ODR season can only hope to witness a scene like MacLaggan did on Sunday night, but the thought of layering up, strapping on the skates and getting to play some puck outdoors is exciting enough.

Photo Credit: Tristan MacLaggan