[Hanne]

goblue332 wrote: "The difference between being on the shore of Lake Michigan and inland is that usually the shore towns such as Manistee will get less precipitation (especially snow) as compared to inland towns such as Cadillac."

Thanks for the helpful post! That's the sort of info. that will help us make our decision. Some of the areas we're gonna re-visit are are the Manistee (and north of) coast and East Tawas up to Alpena. Thanks!

[Loves Gaylord]

I would recommend the Gaylord area - there is lots of undeveloped land around here and acreage for your horses. Plus, Gaylord itself has a great downtown. Other pluses are Glen's Grocery, a super Walmart, Kohls, Home Depot, Lowe's, and Old Navy. And, still a small town atmosphere and within a short driving distance and can quickly get back out into the country. Good luck!

[aeroweb]

You want Traverse City or outskirts. Within driving distance, Leelanau will give you a very elite artsy feel but Acme will bring you right back to earth. Elk Rapids has a beautiful little marina and Lake Michigan will take your breath away.

[zajinxyqat]

Houghton winters can be tough, but tolerable. This winter has been mild, but last was cold with one storm that dumped ~3 feet of snow in ~24 hours. I thought I would be snowed in for days, but was completely plowed out the following day. The city does reasonably well getting the roads around the MTU campus and up to the hospital in Hancock cleaned up. Plus there are plenty of winter activites. I don't see as much art in Houghton as in Marquette. I also don't see many people with horses. I have seen some, but I couldn't imagine living that far out of town (personal opinion).

I am origianlly form downstate, and love the traverse area (unfortunately many areas are getting very populated). The further north, the less populated. Charlevoix and Petoskey are nice also, but were dealing with rapid growth when I moved to Houghton 3 years ago.

Whatever you decide, good luck!