There aren't many things more Canadian than playing hockey so when you move that activity outside into our amazing winter landscape, it is pretty much quintessentially Canadian.

Cranbrook has three enclosed arenas, the Memorial, the Kinsmen and the Rec Plex, plus the outside rink at Baker Park and the pond at Idlewild Park. For those who want to bring the experience closer to home there is the backyard rink.

Upon visiting a couple of local, homemade backyard rinks, it is obvious they are built for the pure enjoyment of kids and adults alike, playing a friendly game of hockey or just enjoying gliding across the ice in the hushed outdoors.

This is the second year Tom Truman has built a rink in his yard for his two sons Roc, eight, and Scout, seven.

"My kids love hockey and it's so convenient because when they come home from school or any time they feel like skating we don't have to load them up in the truck and drive them to a rink," he said. "They don't seem to care how cold it is. They love hockey so this is what we do."

Truman's sons play on the same novice team and often practice out on their very own rink.

Having your very own rink in your backyard is a bit like being the kid with a pool in the summertime; all your friends want to come over and use it. Alfred Hummel, who has made a rink at his house for his nine year-old son for the past four winters, said lots of people enjoy it.

"My son and his friends play on it, the parents come and play on it," he said. "It gets used lots. We've had people who have never skated on it, to ex-NHL players on it."

Truman's rink has wooden boards around it while Hummel's has snow ledges, so every backyard rink has its differences. They both gave the same answer when asked what the most important feature of a homemade rink is: level ground.

"You need level ground or else you need plastic to dam it up and it's a lot more work," said Hummel, who levelled and compacted gravel for the spot his rink is on. "Level ground is the big thing."

Truman recommends using a transit tool to ensure the land you're putting your rink on is level.

"Just using your eye and thinking it's level doesn't work," he said.

Beyond having flat surface, there are a few other tips to building a rink. Hummel said a good temperature for flooding the ice is –5 C. Truman's rink, about 15-by-30 ft. took about 10 days of flooding to get it ready to skate on. Both started building their rinks in mid-December. The outside rinks usually last until the end of February or middle of March.

Truman floods their rink each time after his sons use it. He said he takes advantage of really cold weather, which allows him to flood the ice about every 30 minutes because it freezes so quickly.

Truman recommends having some sort of netting or barrier at each end of the rink to stop pucks from flying too far off the ice and getting lost.

If winging it yourself isn't your style, you can buy a kit called the EZ Rink at the local Canadian Tire. This product retails for $99 and it claims to be an eco-friendly product because you will use less water. It is reusable, does not require any tools to build and it allows you to build a rink 15-by-23 ft. You assemble the borders, put down the plastic liner, put on the protective fastening tubes and then fill with water as per the instruction manual included with the kit.

There are also countless websites dedicated to the art of building a backyard rink. One such website is www.mybackyardicerink.com. This Canadian website offers advice on every aspect of building a backyard rink including what to do if your yard is sloped, flooding the ice surface and packing snow.