Things to Know If You Visit Michigan in the Winter
This week Michigan cities and towns all up and down the coast of Lake Michigan were walloped by a raging winter snow storm. We have over a foot of snow some places, wind chills below zero, schools were closed and ski resorts opened early. The thing is, it isn’t even winter yet according to the calendar! This was the view from my car this morning. It looked more like January than mid November.
Of course, we’re hearty here in The Great Lakes State, and we take it all in stride. Michigan is actually a pretty cool (no pun intended) place in the winter. The snow makes everything look like it’s covered in fluffy white frosting, and there are lots of ways to enjoy the outdoors as long as you bundle up. If you’re not from our Winter Wonderland, here a few things to know before you visit in the winter:
1. The weather can change in an instant and be completely different just a mile down the road. It will be sunny one moment and snowing the next. We have a saying here, “If you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes. It’ll change.”
2. Blame Lake Michigan for our fickle weather. Cold air moving over the warmer lake water can whip up a massive lake effect snow storm seemly out of nowhere. Wind speed and direction determine which way and how far inland the snow goes. So the weather literally changes with the wind. It’s a phenomenon folks living downwind of the Great Lakes are very familiar with.
3. We embrace winter, mostly because we have no choice unless we want to stay inside until April. You’ll find us out skiing, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, hunting, ice fishing and even dog sledding despite flying snow and arctic temperatures.
4. Kids in Michigan love winter because it means getting out of school on snow days and spending them sledding, building snow forts and having snowball fights.
5. Snow doesn’t stop us from going places in our cars either. You’ll probably think we drive too fast for road conditions, but don’t worry. We have four wheel drive, snow tires and we’ve been driving in this stuff our whole lives.
6. It’s true that after a few months the white stuff can get a little monotonous. That’s why when we’re out driving we like to play a little game called Dodge the Pot Holes in the winter.
7. You don’t want to pick a fight with someone from Michigan. We have strong arms from shoveling all that snow.
8. You may wonder why some of us are wearing shorts when it’s 33 degrees outside. It’s because if it’s above freezing in February, it’s a heatwave!
9. Lake Michigan is as stunningly beautiful when frozen solid in the winter as it is when it’s blue and ripply in the summer.
10. It’s called The Mitten State for a reason, so be sure to bring your mittens along with a warm coat and scarf when you visit this winter!
