Northern Michigan - your other car is a snow mobile?

Ohio Rusty · #1 01/01/12, 09:41 AM

From the weather this morning ... it looks like you'll be needing one. We here in Ohio will miss the bullet. Post a pic or two of your place after the blizzard is over. 12 inches of snow here would shut down Ohio .....
Keep Warm !! This is what you prep for ........
Ohio Rusty ><>

Riverdale · #2 01/01/12, 10:30 AM

I lived in northwestern Lower Pennisula (the infamous Lake Charlevoix snowbelt aka the backside of Boyne Mountain)

Lived there 45 years. Had a 4WD, but never a snowmobile.

Did have snowshoes tho

flewism · #3 01/01/12, 11:28 AM

The U.P. and the northern L.P. have gotten minimum snow so far this year. The ski and snowmobile industry are suffering because of it, so this will be a welcomed change.
My son attends NMU in Marquette (western U.P. on Lake Superior) and they will take the brunt of this storm. It is such a beautiful area and very hilly which does make for treacherous driving in the snow. The city and county do a outstanding job with snow removal. The people that reside there full time are also a breed above in effort they put forth insuring their neighbors well being. This storm is just a normal event for these people and I bet many will be disappointed if it doesn't live up to its billing.
My son is home right now and is not driving back until 1/9, school starts back until 1/16. Now my son driving in this weather is another story, but right now his drive looks clear for next weekend.
Once he is there he really does not need to drive except for hockey practice, which he could take the bus if he chose to.
He is driving a 2005 explorer 4WD and still refuses to bring any extra snow gear. Still young and dumb.

Kazahleenah · #4 01/01/12, 11:34 AM

There's no snow on the ground at all. Raining right now. HOPE we get the snow they are forcasting!! We need that ground cover before the temps plummet.
IF we get it, I'll post some pics.

flewism · #5 01/01/12, 07:13 PM

I'm actually hoping for the exact opposite. Our land is nothing but muddy soup right now with all this rain and warm temperatures. I need a week of hard freeze so I can get out to harvest firewood and not have to plow snow in this muddy soup.
My neighbor picked up a longhorn heifer right after Christmas and sunk his 16' stock trailer on his own place trying to get her in the paddock. His truck is a 2WD dually. His Farm-all H would not pull the trailer free, even with my 4WD compact with chains on the rear pulling also. We ended up roping and walking the cow to the padlock, this was no fun as she was spooked and still has her horns. Then running about 100' of 3/8" chain to the trailer while keeping the truck on the gravel drive to pull it out, this made quite a mess that needs to be cleaned up come spring.

**Tiempo** · #6 01/01/12, 07:37 PM

We're in the southern part of mid MI, between Lansing and Ann Arbor. It was really warm this morning, then the rain started turning to snow mid afternoon.

haypoint · #7 01/01/12, 11:57 PM

Not much snow in the eaastern U.P., yet. Ferry to Mackinac Island still running. In a month there is a big Pond Hockey Ternament in St. Ignace, followed by youth hockey the next weekend, then Ice Races with runners and big sails, in later Feb.
Will be lots of ice and snow by then. Also, I-500 Snowbobile Race in Sault Ste. Marie, MI

Kazahleenah · #8 01/02/12, 05:46 AM

We didn't get anything but rain, then HIGH winds.
How'd the rest of you fare?

**Tiempo** · #9 01/02/12, 09:55 AM

We have a dusting.

Jim-mi · #10 01/02/12, 10:12 AM

Drifted so bad I have no idea how much I got.

A small village north of here reports 13"

(northwest LP in the heart of the lake effect snow belt)

7thswan · #11 01/02/12, 10:57 AM

We had awful winds. Got about 1 inch, here in the Thumb. It is still windy.

Callieslamb · #12 01/02/12, 08:25 PM

We have about 8 inches....but we are no where near nothern MI- rather about as far south as you can get. Lots of drifting. Lots of wind. It was snowing and blowing all day long. More tomorrow I hear.

haypoint · #13 01/03/12, 10:57 AM

Once again, the southern part of the state gets hammered with snow and the storm misses the northern 2/3.
While you are shoveling out, Callieslamb, be glad you don't have our temperatures.

Callieslamb · #14 01/03/12, 11:57 AM

I was wise enough to schedule the removal of a large and painful bunion from my right foot for the winter months - no shoveling for me. Poor DH has all my chores to do for six weeks......while I sit in my recliner reading books and knitting. He loves his snow blower though, since we lived in Iowa for 12 years with just shovels. It's snowing some more right now.

Yes, I am very glad we don't have your temps!

rxkeith · #15 01/03/12, 08:39 PM

We were down state when the storm hit, so it will be interesting to see what it's like when we get home. The spine of the Keweenaw got hit pretty hard. That's home for us. No snow mobile here, but we do have all wheel drive, and a truck with a big plow.

Keith

haypoint · #16 01/03/12, 11:00 PM

I heard of a guy from Michigan that when he retired, he wired a snow shovel to his truck's grill and headed south. He said he was going to drive until someone asked him what that thing was.

In the southern part of the Keweenaw, in the summer, I saw a snowblower on the flat roof of a used car dealer. They wrapped a blue tarp over/around it. They need it to get the snow off in the winter when it gets too heavy/deep. Rather than hoist it up and down each season, they leave it right up there. Google MTU Winter Carnival.

Callieslamb · #17 01/03/12, 11:34 PM

When we moved here, I had to ask what the orange poles were in all the parking lots. Imagain my surprise when I was told they would disappear soon enough - and they did - in banks of snow! Then someone sent me pictures from the "big one" where they were using semi's to haul the snow out and the snow was deeper than the semis were tall. I'd like more snow, but not that much.

We have a blade on the tractor but haven't tried using it on snow yet.

haypoint · #18 01/04/12, 07:58 AM

Ah, yes, the Big Snow.
Must have been 15 or so years ago. First week of December. My son and I headed out from eastern UP to western UP for a High School Wrestling meet. I was going to pick up some other kids at the school. It was snowing so hard I could hardly see to drive. Then I had to stop and brush the snow off the headlights. Seemed odd. When I got into town, I saw that only the main streets were plowed. There was 2 feet of freshly fallen snow. The wrestling meet was canceled and I dropped my son off at a friends house for the day. I headed home. The snow was nearly three feet deep, but light and fluffy. As I got to my house, the Jeep was pushing so much snow that snow was piling up on the hood and I coulldn't see. I stopped but couldn't get out as the snow was up to the side windows of the doors. My wife brought out a snow shovel and I was able to get a door opened. I shoveled in front of the Jeep so I could get a running start and made it into the driveway.
That weekend, 60 incches of snow fell. National Guard was called in to haul snow away. When everyone shoveled the snow off roofs, cleared driveways and the city plowed roads, there wasn't enough places to pile the snow. It had to be hauled away.
But that was the only outside help we needed. Deer either starved or were hit by cars as they couldn't travel in 5 feet of snow.
Took a lot of snowblowers to get all the snow off Wal Mart's roof.

All over the U.P., the County Road Commission drives sticks into the ground along the edges of the road, 1/2 inch diameter saplings about 10 feet tall. When it snows it is easy to lose track of where the road is, so the sticks act as guides.

A person, new to the area, questioned why they plant those trees so close to the road, " and they never live."

Jim-mi · #19 01/04/12, 09:24 AM

Yup . . .when we get dumped on we handle the situation ourselves . . . . .NO FEMA called out.

Gotta chuckle when the east coast gets 'dumped on' ( 6inches ). . the whole world is "coming to the end"

Yes I have buried my snowmobile . . . . . . . kinda takes the fun out of it . . . .but ya dig out and keep on playin . . .. . . .

While running the snowmobile trail groomer I have seen sleds (off the trail) with just a bit of the windshield sticking up out of the snow . . . . . .I'll stop and ask if everybody is OK . ..if so I'm on my way.
Just once did I "tow" a guy out of his predicament (back on to the trail) . . . .he was one tired puppy...........

Callieslamb · #20 01/04/12, 09:25 AM

As a said new comer, I was dismayed to see some of those 'trees' disappear under all the snow.....but I don't think the ones down here are 10 ft tall. More like 4. And it was the snow plows that buried them- not 4 feet of snow. I'd much rather have snow than bare ground. Snow is a good insulator for my garden flowers.