The Official Michigan Winter Thread

[david_z]

Originally Posted by MikeIn248

@Mt. Bohemia

I've still never made the trip there. Can anyone say what's a realistic drive time from the Detroit area?

My focus for big trips that involve long drives is generally east, not north. I can get to Whiteface, NY, in 10.5 hours. 12.5 hours gets me to Sugarbush, VT. (Heck, 6.5 hours to Bristol, NY.) Sooner or later I want to go to Bohemia, just to try it, but not this year in low-snow conditions.

You can get to Houghton in under 10 hours in normal driving conditions. Bohemia is 60 miles north of there but as far as I can tell your best bet for lodging and some modicum of nightlife is in Houghton or Copper Harbor. Stay there, drive to/from Bohemia each day.

Also around the 10hr mark from Detroit, as long as there are no issues at the border, is Mont Tremblant, QC. There are some other mountains in the Laurentian range near Montreal, too.

[turbospartan]

Originally Posted by oefdevilvet

It's really an anomaly for the midwest, definitely a place that is more geared towards advanced riders/skiers. The majority of the hill gets pretty bumped up but that's just more natural forming moguls and they are rough in some places and not bad in others, good number of steeps too but the real mindblowing shit there is the trees and they are nearly everywhere but they cut a good bit of the smaller shit, but in the Outer Limits and Hidden Valley as well as the EBC you could end up in some pretty dense woods. As far as skill, don't measure yourself in years riding measure it in what you feel comfortable doing on the hill. However, it seems to me that everyone going there has a good time but most of the people I see there with less than 4-5 years riding/skiing time don't have the skills to really make the most of it. You could probably handle it if you can manage a black with some bumps but the trees/cliffs/drops there are where the fun is and if your not able to ride that terrain at full steam, you might feel like you didn't get the full effect.

Also weather plays a big factor there, by early-mid January they typically already have a really thick base(which they NEVER groom), so that's when you start looking to get up there during a snowstorm or a lake effect cycle. It's those days when they have a foot of fresh snow when it is at it's best, otherwise if all the fresh stuff gets packed it's still pretty good unless the temps are hovering above and below the freezing point for a few days(that's when you see people leaving the hill and going to Porkies for the day). When they have good conditions up there it's really the best place in the midwest IMO.

I agree with this. I bought a season pass a few years back (while still at MSU) - if you buy the season pass on a specific day (1st day in December or something), its $99 for the season. I think a day pass is around $35-40, so if you ride 3 days its worth it. We made the trip for a long weekend so we rode 3-4 days.

Compared to anything in MI - this place is extreme. You ride the chairlift up and it is actually very steep. There are no "easy" runs at all, so its definitely not a place to bring your kids. We were finding cliffs and rocks everywhere to jump off of. The glades are pretty awesome for a MI resort... overall, if someone blindfolded you, flew you in a heli and dropped you off on top - you would not know that you were in Michigan.

I also agree with the snow comment. The night we got there, it snowed about a foot of fresh powder. That first day was incredible - like I said, we were jumping off cliffs and everything with no issues. But it didn't snow again while we were there, and while it never became icy or anything... it definitely wasn't fresh like that first day. You could still find powder in the trees though. Again, most of this was damn near 6-7 years ago at least, and was before they kept expanding to the lookers right (towards the lake), where you can ride even more trees, etc. and get taken back to the front with a shuttle (they had the shuttle when I went there, but wasn't as far to the right).

Views of the lake are pretty cool from the top, and if you pass Bohemia and keep heading towards Beta Griese - that is my favorite beach in Michigan (in the summer, obviously). Crystal clear water and super soft sand... the sand goes out at least 100-200 yards to where you're only chest deep that far out. There are often sandbars where you can walk out there then be knee deep 200 yards off shore. Because it is so shallow that far out... I think it keeps the water warmer (this is me assuming) than normal temps in Superior. Its still cold, but not bone-chilling-I-need-an-electric-blanket cold. Funny story - the road between Bohemia and that beach, when we went up that first day to ride Bohemia, I was actually showing my 2 buddies Superior over there and we realized that the powder was absolutely perfect on that road (wasn't plowed), so on the way back we hooked up a rope behind my buddy's F-150 and were riding behind his truck. It was actually really awesome... snow was perfect and you could get going like 25mph and just slashin the snow.

Sorry for the huge reply.

[SMDSkata]

I talked to a few Forestry Majors up here at Tech about the Huron Mountains. From what they told me, unless your a licensed surveyor, they said keep out of it because the security there is pretty tight.

What they did tell me though is to check out Mt. Houghton.
http://www.mountainzone.com/mountain...sp?fid=6702156

Its located pretty close to Bohemia and about the same height roughly.










Same pic as before but in the winter.


The route from school. White is the car route, Black is a sled route.



Anyways, me and my 2 buds are planning to go out there on Saturday. Me and one friend are gonna drive out there and try to get as close to it as possible without getting stuck. The other one is taking his mountain sled and meeting us at the point where we park and taking us the rest of the way.

It's looking like another foot of snow may fall before Saturday morning so it should be a fun. Were kind of concerned that the trees may get to tight for lengthy runs, but even if I got there without taking one run, its gotta be one hell of a view a the top. I'll be sure to post some pics.

[david_z]

awesome now you're making me want to drive up there...

[oefdevilvet]

Originally Posted by david_z

awesome now you're making me want to drive up there...

I talked to a couple guys from Detroit last time I was hear and I think they said it was 10 hours, it's usually about 5 for me from Green Bay. I would say check it out even if you don't end up going ever again, because when they have good conditions it's the place to be IMO.

BTW, I just got into Bohemia and it's snowing pretty good, Lonnie(owner) says it's supposed to pick up tonight and over the next few days. I wouldn't be suprised if I get up tomorrow and see 6" of new snow, I know it's not much but I'm taking what I can get this year. However, this is lake effect so you never know, could end up with less than 3" or a foot but I really think 6" seems about about right with what I'm looking at out the window.

[david_z]

If we went it would be a day trip probably from Marquette, and the forecast up in Marquette MI looks pretty dismal for next weekend. I'm not counting it out - yet...

[david_z]

Major snowstorm headed for Metro Detroit; 6 inches or more expected | The Detroit News | detroitnews.com

MAKE YOUR TIME.

[oefdevilvet]

Originally Posted by david_z

If we went it would be a day trip probably from Marquette, and the forecast up in Marquette MI looks pretty dismal for next weekend. I'm not counting it out - yet...

Originally Posted by david_z

Major snowstorm headed for Metro Detroit; 6 inches or more expected | The Detroit News | detroitnews.com

MAKE YOUR TIME.

It's about time you trolls got some snow, I'll see if I can get some info around here on whether to expect good conditions next weekend or not and let you know. One other thing that might help is to check forecasts for Mohawk/Copper Harbor. I would suggest looking at weatherunderground.com or johndee.com, those two are usually pretty accurate what I usually do is look at Copper Harbor and Mohawk 5-10 forecasts on weather.com and then use weatherstreet.com to watch the Jet Stream, Air Mass Temps, and Air Mass Humidity. It's a little more technical but look for W, NW or SE winds with high humidity levels and cold air systems moving south from Canada that cover the northern half of the UP, that is typically when you will find the best conditions there. As I said though I will investigate and let you know what's up, I get into it when looking for the best conditions here and you either don't understand what I just said or have lost interest a while ago. I don't blame you.

[david_z]

yeah i've been meaning to check johndee.com for an update.

i'm watching the forecast at Mohawk since that seems to be closest to Bohemia.

[oefdevilvet]

Originally Posted by david_z

yeah i've been meaning to check johndee.com for an update.

i'm watching the forecast at Mohawk since that seems to be closest to Bohemia.

Sounds like tonight most Lonnie's thought right now and the thought of the majority. The lowest I heard was from a guy that just entered the hostel who was out today who says he thinks none and that the 6" they got last night will be it except for a dusting. My opinion is, is 4-6" with more continuing to the next day at roughly the same amount. Mohawk is closer to Boho gents, however Delaware is the closest town, the next closest town that has a regular local update is Copper Harbor. The angular difference between the two is roughly 80 degrees, the trick is to find a way to be able to predict how the weather patterns will affect the region between the two, from the direction the storm will be approaching from. Jetstream winds from the NW/NNW direction is a good indicator that cooler air from Canada is approaching to meet with warm moist air over the lake and if the winds and cool air temps approaching the Keewenaw Penninsula from a direction with Lake Superior intersecting from an 80-90 degree angle. That's kinda how things work if your looking for powder up here, so it's always a gamble, but usually during periods such as that the areas that get the most snow during times like that are the Keewenaw and SE UP shore plus the region within a 10-15 mile radius of Marquette. MAIN POINT: These particular areas are the best places in the MIDWEST to look for powder, the New York, Ontario, NE region gets snow but there is a reason it's called the Ice Coast, if they don't get snow they have ice and groomed ice, but higher verticals and are supposedly "easier" to get to than CO, WY, UT, MT, etc... So if you want to stay in the midwest and still find fairly regular powder conditions. You need to choose between vertical and terrain I guess when making this descion, horse a piece maybe but if I can't go out west this is where I look.