[nep321]

Last month, I had the opportunity to take a road trip and drive through and spend some time in the upper peninsula (UP). To my surprise, as someone who has been to 47 states, the UP is now one of my FAVORITE most beautiful places in the entire country. I wish I could live there, but it's not practical.

I drove up coming from I-75 over the Mackinac Bridge, then drove along U.S. 2 west along the beautiful shoreline, then heading up into Newberry, where I spent the night. I then had the opportunity to drive up to the Upper Falls and Lower Falls parks, which were beautiful. Then, I headed further west along M28 and eventually ended up driving through Munising, then into Marquette. I went to this park there and saw beautiful cliffs along Lake Superior. It was just breathtaking. Then, I drove through along U.S. 41 west, then down M95 south, which was also a beautiful drive. I really enjoyed the taiga-esque landscape with all the short evergreen trees and white birch trees everywhere. It was uniquely amazing scenery that I have never seen in the lower 48 states ever.

I then drove along M69 and headed through Crystal Falls, then proceeded southbound into the Nicolet Forest region of Wisconsin, which was also amazingly beautiful.

I LOVE the scenic beauty and vibe of the UP and wish I could live there. But as a young, single gay guy who is an accountant, forget it (there are barely any gays in the UP, let alone jobs).

But seriously, the UP is one of the nicest places in the U.S. that no one really thinks about or talks about.

What is life like in the UP for a single 30-something? What is life like in the UP in general? Does everyone know everyone? Are winters really that bad? Can you wear shorts all summer long? Do you need AC? Does it ever feel isolated from society?

[animatedmartian]

Marquette averages 120-150 inches of snowfall a year. Boston's recent 'bad' winter broke their record of the snowiest winter with a total only 108 inches.

By comparison, down here in Metro Detroit, we get a measly 30-40 inches per year and people still hate it. A bad winter seems to be a pretty relative term in this case.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by animatedmartian

Marquette averages 120-150 inches of snowfall a year. Boston's recent 'bad' winter broke their record of the snowiest winter with a total only 108 inches.

By comparison, down here in Metro Detroit, we get a measly 30-40 inches per year and people still hate it. A bad winter seems to be a pretty relative term in this case.

The keewenaw peninsula often gets over 300 inches of snowfall a season.

[nep321]

Originally Posted by GraniteStater

The keewenaw peninsula often gets over 300 inches of snowfall a season.

I don't care about the snowfall; I can handle it; I'm from New England.

[Sparrow_temp]

Is there anywhere in New England that 300 inches annual snowfall is common?

[craig11152]

To be fair 300 inches is not common in the Keweena. Its only happened about 4 or 5 times in 124 years according to Michigan Tech. If your up in Copper Harbor you might see 300 plus a fair amount more.

[HappyFarm34]

I just hope it never becomes a box-store landmine and strip malls. It is beautiful up in the U.P.

[Indentured Servant]

So, the first battle (well....almost battle) between Michigan and Ohio (state/territory) is finally paying off as Ohio got Toledo and Michigan got the U.P.

The Time Ohio and Michigan Almost Went to War | Mental Floss

[leebeemi]

Winter is only bad if you avoid it. You HAVE to get out in it! In Marquette, there is downhill & x-ctry skiing; fat tire biking (yes, all winter long!); snowshoeing; skating; hiking to ice caves; even ice sailing. Plus, we have indoor rec facilities (gyms, the University rec center, etc.). Stay in, and you'll hate every minute of it. Embrace it. It's not going anywhere. For me, being threatened with a warm, rainy winter is the worst thing I can imagine. Once fall is done, let's get some snow on the ground and PLAY!

Summers can be great or vastly disappointing. This summer, IMHO, was great. We went to the beach more than the last 2 summers combined. Yes, we do swim in Lake Superior, and yes, it is cold. But on a hot day--it feels so good! As far as shorts all summer--my son wears them all winter, too. That's a personal comfort preference! The perfect summer temp spread for me is 78-82. I consider that summer hot--comfortable and bearable. Most people I know don't have central air conditioning--just a window unit in the living room and/or bedroom.

Being neither in my 30s or single, it's hard for me to say what it's like socially. We do have the university, so have more entertainment available than a town our size should. There's often too much going on to take everything in. There may be a band you like playing at one venue, then a performance of MacBeth at the brew pub, then a reception for an artist at a little gallery, all on the same night. Then you remember it's burger night at that new little restaurant downtown, and your plans really go to hell! It will just depend on what you like. Most of my entertainment revolves around my kids. Marquette is very gay friendly, FWIW. We're a pretty quirky place, and open about people making choices for themselves. Transgender? Fine! Homeschool? Fine! Off-the-grid? Fine! Vegan? Fine! We have a lot of small businesses here--the areas struggling are the old "malls," which are really sad. We do have our box stores, but they are mostly relegated to the west end of town--WalMart, Lowe's, Menard's, Target, Best Buy, TJ Maxx are all on the outskirts, just past our most successful mall, which is maybe 75% full--we lost JCPenney a couple of years ago, and have a Younker's, Kohl's & MC Sports as anchors, a smattering of retail inside. Downtown, however, has seen a bit of a boom.

I do sometimes feel isolated, but not in the way you may mean. Yes, our largest "city" nearby is Green Bay, and that's over 3 hours away--and not much of a "city" either. My problem is that everything I need is in Marquette. I rarely NEED to leave town for anything. I grew up in a small town where it was a 30 minute trip for ANYTHING. I start to feel walled in after awhile, and just need to drive somewhere. I don't mind the few days a year that I can't leave my house because of snow. That's what marshmallows & hot cocoa are for.

I live in Marquette now, although I grew up in Sault Ste. Marie, and spent a great deal of time in the western end, near Iron Mountain. I wouldn't live anywhere else in the UP. I love it here, and my experience has been very positive. I know it isn't for everyone, though. Let me know if you have any specific questions. I'll see if I can answer them.

Best of luck!

[tuebor]

I went to grad school at Michigan Tech, where the student body was 2/3 male. Not fun for a single straight man over 30. As for single gay men, a gay colleague summed it up this way: "The odds are good, but the goods are odd."