[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by Nivalis

Detroit NWS made snowfall maps for winters since 04-05:
Seasonal_Snow

Gave a good visual confirming michsnowlvr's observations.

Less and less snow. I don't live in Michigan, but it's one of those places I would want to go to in the winter, specifically for the snow. Less and less snow sounds scary.

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by JGatti

If you like winter and snow, lower Michigan really has sucked in recent years. 2008 we had a really good winter. But I don't recall much since. That year stuck out in my mind because that was the year my family got the lets move to Arizona bug in their rear. Michigan needs better jobs up north for people who love the snow can move there and enjoy it Down here anymore I'd just as soon live someplace that doesn't get any.

Maybe northern Michigan could be a sleeper location for more skiing resorts(or for cross-country skiing).

[scorpio516]

Originally Posted by michsnowlvr

Hmm...where did you get that stat? There is no way they average that little. The least snowy spot in MI is going to be the EXTREME SE corner of the state (Monroe county) with an average of probably near 40". Detroit averages between 43-44" and Toledo, OH between 37-38". There is no "first-order" climate station near Jackson, so any averages would be based on weather spotter data which is flawed due to missing data. Basically the best thing to do is connect the dots with the main climate sites in MI from west to east...in inches, Grand Rapids averages in the low-70s, Battle Creek in the low 60s, Ann Arbor in the mid-50s, and Detroit in the low 40s.

The Jackson airport NOAA station median snowfall is 34", from 71 to 2000.

U of M's NOAA station has a median of 44.8"
Hillsdale has a NOAA station, median of 47.2"
Battle Creek's NOAA station, 42.3"
Dearborn is only 24.8"
DTW, 37.7"

NCDC: U.S. Climate Normals -

[michsnowlvr]

Originally Posted by scorpio516

The Jackson airport NOAA station median snowfall is 34", from 71 to 2000.

U of M's NOAA station has a median of 44.8"
Hillsdale has a NOAA station, median of 47.2"
Battle Creek's NOAA station, 42.3"
Dearborn is only 24.8"
DTW, 37.7"

NCDC: U.S. Climate Normals -

Average snowfall is the mean, not the medium. And also, coop stations data for snowfall is NOT an accurate representation because of missing snowfall and not measuring snow properly. Snowfall is one of the least accurate reports for coop observers because of the different measuring techniques. One station may measure properly, which is measuring the snowfall every 6 hours and clearing a snowboard. Another station (and a lot of coops do this, which is understandable with jobs and such)....may just measure at the time of their morning observation which doesnt account for settling, melting, etc. A good comparison is: the NWS office at Marquette/Negaunee averages 170.8" per season...but a coop in Marquette only averages 108". Sites like DTW airport are quality controlled first order stations...Dearborn, Battle Creek, Hillsdale are not. U of M Ann Arbor, while it is not a first-order station, is quality controlled by the meteorology program and proper 6-hour measurments are done.

Basically the average (mean) for the official climate stations in southeast MI per the NCDC link:
The mean for Detroit Metro Airport is 43.3"
The mean for Flint Bishop Airport is 47.9"
The mean for Saginaw MBS Airport is 42.9"

You are not going to average 52.1" at U of M Ann Arbor, 43.3" at DTW airport.....then 31.7" at Dearborn

This link is the best, as it has the monthly snowfall for the entire period of record for Detroit, Flint, and Saginaw, so you can see the yearly differences. Detroits records go all the way to 1880.
NWS Detroit/Pontiac -- Southeast Michigan Climate Information

[michsnowlvr]

Originally Posted by green_mariner

Less and less snow. I don't live in Michigan, but it's one of those places I would want to go to in the winter, specifically for the snow. Less and less snow sounds scary.

2007-08 through 2010-11 saw the MOST SNOW at ALL SOUTHEAST MICHIGAN weather stations OF ANY FOUR YEAR PERIOD ON RECORD which stretches OVER 130 YEARS at Detroit. I dont what it is, but I feel I could probably post weather data til Im blue in the face and some would not get it. Snowfall in the 8 winters since 2004-05 at Detroit has averaged 50.8" (and yes this INCLUDES last years sucky winter of only 26"). This is OVER 10" MORE than the longterm 130-year average. So no, it is NOT snowing less and less. I mean there are many aspects of climate that we can argue, but this one is non-debatable. Winters of the past decade have been seeing an increase in snow in SE MI!

[michsnowlvr]

Originally Posted by green_mariner

Maybe northern Michigan could be a sleeper location for more skiing resorts(or for cross-country skiing).

You can do plenty of cross-country skiing in southern Michigan. Northern Michigan is snowmobile country.

[Coldjensens]

What seems to be different from when I was a kid is that now it snows and then melts in a day or two. When we were kids, it woudl snow and stay and then snow some more. Eventually you had quite a lot of snow to play in. We may be getting as much or more snow in total now, but it does not stick around and build up. Last year I ws not able to go sledding wihtthe kids once becuase it usually melted before the weekend. the few weekends we had enough snow for sledding I was away.

[detwahDJ]

Detroit is a well-known winter playground.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vW6A...=results_video

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by michsnowlvr

You can do plenty of cross-country skiing in southern Michigan. Northern Michigan is snowmobile country.

You have the Porcupine Mountains in the Upper Peninsula. Couldn't that area be good for skiing?

[michsnowlvr]

Originally Posted by green_mariner

You have the Porcupine Mountains in the Upper Peninsula. Couldn't that area be good for skiing?

Oh do not get me wrong...skiing is excellent up north as well. I just mean that when you are in southern MI, a frequent winter favorite in area parks is cross-country skiing and good old fashioned sledding down a hill. We get a lot more winter than most of the country....but drive 5 hours north towards the snowbelts and you will encounter way deeper snow. When you go up north, snowmobiles literally outnumber cars, and are out and about all day and all night.