Most seasonal rinks sell you a time slot. You book an hour, show up, skate it and leave. Evans on Ice sells you a day. At the gate you get a wristband, and it's good for the entire day you redeem it. For a family coming in from across the CSRA, that just means a long afternoon. For a household a short drive away in Highland Lakes, it means you can skate after school, go home for dinner and come back once the lights are on, all on one ticket.
The rink returns to Evans Towne Center Park on Wednesday, November 18, 2026, and runs through Monday, January 18, 2027. Here's how it works, why it ended up in Evans, and what's going on around the park while it's open.
Augusta's Price Increase Sent the Rink to Evans
The rink didn't start in Columbia County. Mike and Christine Boerner opened it in 2017 at the Augusta Common under the name Augusta on Ice. After the first year, city officials told them they would have to pay much more to keep operating there, so they moved it to Evans Towne Center Park. That history comes from a 2022 Augusta Business Daily profile. Mike told the paper he got the idea from a former customer who had opened a similar business in Northern California, and that he was surprised to find Augusta had no indoor or outdoor ice rink when the family moved here.
The Evans setup is a partnership. The Augusta Press described the founders working with Columbia County's Community and Leisure Services, and the county called it a partnership too. The rink sat out 2020 because of the coronavirus. The Augusta Press covered its return after that break in November 2021. By November 2025, WJBF counted eight seasons. That makes 2026–27 the ninth.
The move matters for anyone living nearby. Every November, a park that hosts concerts and markets the rest of the year turns into a covered ice rink for about two months, and it's close to home for Evans neighborhoods like Highland Lakes.
How the Ticket Actually Works
The ticket rules on the Evans on Ice FAQ page are what make the rink so easy to use from nearby:
Rule | What the FAQ says |
|---|---|
How long a ticket lasts | The whole day you redeem it, tracked with a wristband |
Weekday ticket | Good any Monday through Thursday in the season, except holidays |
Weekend/Holiday/Prime ticket | Good any day of the season |
Skates | Rental included, or bring your own |
Spectators | No ticket needed to watch |
Where to buy | Online, or at the rink if tickets are still available |
Put those rules together and short, repeat visits make sense. A grandparent can sit rinkside for free while the kids skate. A weekday ticket bought online works on any Monday through Thursday you choose, so you don't have to commit to a date ahead of time. Since skates come with the ticket, there's nothing to haul over from home.
One timing detail: the weekday ticket excludes holidays, and Thanksgiving falls on Thursday, November 26 this year. In 2022 the rink opened every day of its eight-week run, including Thanksgiving and Christmas, and Mike Boerner said a surprising number of families came on those holidays. Holiday hours for 2026 haven't been posted yet.
What Last Season's Prices Suggest
Prices for 2026–27 haven't been posted. The FAQ still shows the 2025–26 rates: $14 for weekday public skating, $17 for weekends, and $150 for a season pass. The FareHarbor booking page, which is still tied to last season's dates, lists tickets at $13 to $17 and the same $150 pass.
At last season's rates, a weekday wristband cost $3 less than a weekend one. The season pass paid for itself on the 11th weekday visit, or on the 9th if every visit fell on a weekend. Someone driving in from Aiken or Thomson is unlikely to come that often in a nine-week season. A family a few minutes away could get there with a couple of weeknight visits a week. If this season's prices change, the math changes with them, so check the official site before buying.
Groups get automatic discounts: 15% off for 15 to 24 people, 20% for 25 to 49, and 25% for 50 or more. For a birthday or a team outing, the party tent is 20 by 20 feet, has four round tables, seats 24, and rents in two-hour slots. You can bring your own food, drinks, cake and decorations. Skating tickets are separate, and the rink asks for 15 minutes on each side of your slot for setup and cleanup.
Real Ice, in Georgia, Under a Canopy
Evans on Ice uses real ice. The FAQ describes a covered rink with "super chillers" that keep the ice frozen in warm, sunny weather and in the occasional snow. The Augusta Press reported the rink at about 60 by 100 feet in 2021 and said plainly that the ice was not synthetic. That measurement is five seasons old.
The owners are candid about the trade-offs. "We're outdoor, and we're in Georgia, so the quality of our ice is not great," Mike Boerner told Augusta Business Daily in 2022. "Our ice is sometimes a little choppy." The canopy keeps rain off the ice. Unusually warm days are the real problem. The previous season, an electrical issue had closed the rink for a week. If extreme weather keeps the rink closed, updates go out on its Facebook and Instagram pages, where the handle is @evansonice_.
This is another place where the all-day wristband pays off for nearby families. If a warm December afternoon leaves the surface rough, they can come back after sunset on the same ticket. A family that drove an hour is more likely to skate on whatever ice they find.
The extras give people a reason to stay. A fire pit burns on weekends and holidays, with s'mores and hot cocoa. WJBF reported that a permanent food vendor joined the rink for the 2024 season, selling fried Oreos, funnel cakes and fries alongside the basic packaged concessions. The owners estimated about 15,000 skaters a season in 2022, against their own goal of roughly 14,000, and that count leaves out the parents and grandparents who come to watch. That figure is the owners' estimate, not an audited count.
Lessons and Homeschool Skates Still Show Last Season's Dates
The FAQ lists four 30-minute Saturday group lessons covering the basics of skating, with an optional performance on the last day. Those dates, December 6, December 13, January 3 and January 10, belong to the 2025–26 season. The homeschool skate listing is the same. It shows morning sessions from 9 a.m. to noon with a $10 ticket bought at the rink, also dated for last season. The site's season calendar page still says "2025-2026" at the top. Expect both programs to update once the 2026–27 schedule goes live. Lesson questions go to [email protected].
Around the Park, Before and During the Season
The rink is only one part of the park's late-fall calendar. Here are the dates confirmed so far, in order:
- Tuesday, Oct. 20: Free Trick-or-Treating at Evans Towne Center Park, 7016 Evans Town Center Blvd., 5:30 to 8 p.m.
- Friday, Nov. 6: Jackson Dean closes the county's Fall Concert Series at the park. Gates open at 6 p.m. and the music starts at 7. Our post on the concert series covers how those Friday nights run.
- Wednesday, Nov. 18: Evans on Ice opens for the 2026–27 season.
- Sunday, Dec. 6: The Columbia County Christmas Parade, presented by the Merchants Association of Columbia County. Applications to be in the parade have closed.
- Monday, Jan. 18, 2027: Last day of the rink season.
One date is still missing. Last year's Christmas in Columbia County, held December 4, 2025, combined a tree lighting with Evans on Ice, holiday lights, vendors, food, Santa and the Grinch. The county hasn't posted a 2026 date yet, and its events calendar currently runs only through October 31. When the county announces it, keep in mind that a weekday wristband won't cover it if it falls on a holiday or a Friday through Sunday.
At the Fairey Team, we donate part of every commission to local nonprofits, and we think a winter rink a few minutes from home is one of the things that makes a neighborhood feel like home. If you're getting your Highland Lakes home ready for a spring listing, we'll build you a free marketing plan that shows buyers what living this close to Evans Towne Center Park is like all year, ice season included.
