[Hanne]

We're planning to move to Michigan in 3 years and are trying to narrow our search to at least a region to house hunt in.

Here's what we're looking for:

+++Lower peninsula....north of a line from East Tawas to Pentwater

+++An undeveloped, quiet, area. Lots of wildlife. Did I mentioned undeveloped? <g>

+++Affordable acreage (we have horses)

+++Low crime

+++Within driving distance to a town with an "artsy feel" would be a plus, but not at the expense of the unspoiled, natural area that we are looking for.

We just checked out the Cadillac area......and Manistee and Ludington. We plan to visit the eastern coast of the L.P. next summer.


I'd love to hear your thoughts and recommendations on what areas may have what we're looking for.

Thanks!

[tomterriffic]

Why not look at Oscoda? It's not far from East Tawas and sits right on beautiful Lake Huron...the Sunrise side. Small town with an arts festival every year on the beach.

Oscoda is about an hour or less from Alpena, too. There is some shopping up that way and the drive up there is very scenic. If you like to canoe, Oscoda has some very nice canoeing. Hunting, fishing, fall colors...it's got all of that.

[mariatherese]

I lived in Traverse City for 3 years, it is the best town in Michigan IMO. I would look at that surrounding area. I was born and raised in the U.P. so believe me, I know where to find the best unspoiled nature! Plus, Traverse City has a great artsy feel- I am an artist, too and I am very familiar with the art community there. Good luck!

[Hanne]

Oscoda will definitely be checked out! We like to paddle (kayaks) so that's a plus for that area, too.

But Traverse City? We stopped vacationing there years ago because it seemed to be growing a lot. When a subdivision popped up in Empire we felt it was time to move on.... Also, T.C.seems far more expensive than other areas we've looked at. Hmmm. Maybe we should check out the region roughly an hour from T.C.

Thanks to both of you for the suggestions.

[mhogan10010]

Do I guess Detroit is out???

Good luck.

[jomaco1]

I grew up in Muskegon and have moved back here after living in T.C. for 3 years and several years in Texas as well. T.C. was a greate place to live...but there is nothing like the beauty of a Lake Michigan sunset. For me there is no choice but to live on or near the lakeshore. If I were to have a choice of places to live I would first look at Arcadia:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=e...,0.054245&om=1

which itself is an "artsy" town and also happens to be close to Frankfort...host to at least 3 art fairs annually.

[Hanne]

Yes, Detroit is out. <g>

Arcadia and Frankfort sound interesting. What sort of winter weather can we expect, say from Manistee up to Empire? And from that part of the west coast, moving inland, how does the winter weather change as you go towards Grayling?

[Hanne]

Yes, Detroit is out. <g>

Arcadia and Frankfort sound interesting. What sort of winter weather can we expect, say from Manistee up to Empire? And from that part of the west coast, moving inland, how does the winter weather change as you go towards Grayling?

[jomaco1]

The winters have been getting milder over the last twenty years, but it still comes a little sooner and lasts a little longer the farther north you go. I don't think there's too much of a difference otherwise. All of Michigan gets pretty well dowsed with snow all winter. The coastal cities generally get a little more snow due to the lake effect, but when the lake freezes over that stops. I've often seen the inland cities get hammered harder and again, that may be due to the unfrozen lake. Bottom line is that it is unpredictable. It gets cold and there's snow everywhere.

[Hanne]

jomaco1, I've looked at zone maps (for gardening) and according to those there has been a change....with many areas now being zoned one number higher.

So coastal areas are gonna get more snow (lake effect)....are the temps more moderate on coastal areas due to a moderating effect of the big lakes? Meaning the center of the state will tend to be colder in winter?


We're not sure how far north we can handle the weather. We totally love the UP and we're pretty hardy types, but we've never seen a Houghton or Marquette winter. We are sure of one thing: we're getting out of this hot, humid southern Ohio summers that we HATE.
Thanks