Cathy shared this awesome shot of the Saginaw Water Works in the Absolute Michigan group on Flickr way back in December of 2020 which will give you an idea of how far behind I am! Have a very happy holiday – I will probably be posting regularly but maybe not! For sure I will have the annual roundup of the most popular pics of 2024 next week.
See lots more from Cathy on her Flickr including some stunning shots of frozen bubbles on geraniums!
One of the stories you read more & more every year is how online shopping is killing downtowns. Discover Holland shares that in the 80s when suburban malls were wreaking similar havoc, downtown Holland business owners & the city created a plan for Snow Free Holland, now the largest municipal snowmelt system in North America:
Joining the conversation was Holland native and Prince Corporation founder, Edgar D. Prince. Prince brought to the table an idea that he discovered while in Europe, a system of underground piping that circulates warm water to keep the snow and ice at bay during the winter months. Using this idea, Prince expanded on the possibilities of snow and ice free access in downtown, and thus began the downtown Holland snowmelt project.
Currently, snowmelt is maintained by the Holland Board of Public Works in collaboration with the Holland Energy Park. Snowmelt was first implemented in 1988 and is the largest municipally-run snowmelt system in North America. By using waste heat from power generation, water is heated and circulated through 120 miles of plastic tubing underneath the streets and sidewalks. The tubes are 3/4″ in circumference; Holland has 600,000 square feet of tubing totaling 4.9 miles and 10.5 acres of heated streets and sidewalks. With the water heating up to 95 degrees Fahrenheit, the system can melt 1″ of snow per hour – even at 20 degrees F with 10 MPH winds!
In Lower Michigan the winter storm watch stretches from the Kalamazoo area northward through the Grand Rapids area and up the western shoreline through Muskegon, Grand Traverse area and Charlevoix. Cadillac is also in the winter storm watch. The western Lake Superior shoreline counties in the Upper Peninsula are also in the winter storm watch.
You can find this shot from Michigan’s largest waterfall & many others in the Winter in Michigan gallery on the Michigan Nut Photography website. John also shares much more on his Facebook!
I’ve been hanging onto this post so long I was worried we’d have snow before I shared it!! The National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has released their seasonal outlook for Winter 2024-2025 which says (in part):
This winter, NOAA predicts wetter-than-average conditions for the entire northern tier of the continental U.S., particularly in the Pacific Northwest and the Great Lakes region, along with northern and western Alaska.
“This winter, an emerging La Nina is anticipated to influence the upcoming winter patterns, especially our precipitation predictions,” said Jon Gottschalck, chief of the Operational Prediction Branch of the Climate Prediction Center. La Nina conditions are expected to develop later this fall and typically lead to a more northerly storm track during the winter months, leaving the southern tier of the country warmer and drier.
Rae took this photo at Point Betsie Lighthouse on January 1st of this year. Follow her on Flickr & on Instagram for more!
The 2024-2025 U.S. Winter Outlook map for temperature shows the greatest chances for cooler-than-average conditions in the Pacific Northwest of the U.S. (Image credit: NOAA)
The 2024-2025 U.S. Winter Outlook map for precipitation shows wetter-than-average conditions are most likely across the Great Lakes region of the U.S.. Drier-than-average conditions are forecast for parts of the U.S. Gulf Coast. (Image credit: NOAA)
mLIve’s Mark Torregrossa shares that although it might be a little cool today, much of Michigan’s lower peninsula will leap into the 70s and even low 80s on Saturday. In the Upper Peninsula and within a few miles of a Great Lake, you’ll only have temps in the 60s. Still, nothing to sneeze at right?
Julie got this great shot of the melting ice at Mackinac last April. See more in her Spring & Summer gallery on Flickr.
The Keweenaw Road Commission shared last week that they’ve recorded over 300 inches of snow this winter. The 25 feet of snow is about 6 feet more than normal. While that’s definitely a whole lot, it’s 356 inches of snow recorded in the winter of 1978–79.
While it’s cooler today, yesterday was something to enjoy across the southern half of the state unbelievably balmy temps recorded in places like Kalamazoo (72), Detroit (73), Flint (70) and 72 in St. Joseph where Mark got this sweet shot at Grand Mere Beach a couple weeks ago. Guessing it’s all gone by now!
See more in Mark’s 2022 gallery on Flickr & enjoy your weekend everyone!
Most of Michigan will see highs in the 50s or 60s today and while there’s (of course) still some snow & subzero temps ahead, the temperature trend is most definitely UP!!
Here’s a sweet shot large-format, black & white shot of Kirt’s rig for a recent photo shoot at Little Girl’s Point on Lake Superior near the Michigan/Wisconsin border. You can see more on Flickr & for sure check out his website to view & purchase his work!
Michigan in Pictures 