We have what I think is a Midwest first, Snowriver now has a snow stake cam!

Wednesday - Friday:

To simplify the forecast, I'll break it down by sub-regions and walk through the next 3 days. 

Lake Superior:

The north shore of Lake Superior will continue to see light snow much of Wednesday with the best odds of another inch or two be from Loch Lomond towards Lutsen and the Duluth resorts.

As we shift to Wednesday night into Thursday morning, winds will shift out of the north allowing for lake effect snow to return to the south shore of Lake Superior. At this time 1-4" look likely by Thursday morning for the UP resorts near Lake Superior (Ironwood resorts, Keweenaw resorts, and over towards Marquette Mtn). 

Thursday will bring lingering lake effect snow showers before a strong cold front arrives for Friday, bringing 1-3" with locally higher amounts along the south shore of Lake Superior. At this time, the highest odds of seeing over 3" will be for the western portion of the UP and for Searchmont. Some models have Searchmont seeing as much as 3-6". 

While none of the days individually promise to bring totals over 6", by Friday evening multiple resorts will see total snow in the 4-10" range over the course of the week making for softer turns and some powder stashes in the glades. 

Lower Michigan:

Lower Michigan will be home to a powder day on Wednesday as an area of snow has arrived Wednesday morning. The largest totals will be for the Detroit, Michigan resorts, with 3-7" likely Wednesday into Wednesday evening. 2-6" appears likely for the resorts in southwest lower Michigan for Wednesday. 

For the northern half of lower Michigan, off-and-on light snow will continue through Thursday, with additional accumulation ranging from a dusting to a couple of inches for the Traverse City resorts. 

Here are the forecast precipitation types from the HRRR for Wednesday morning into the evening:

Friday, thanks to a strong cold front, more snow is expected with some added lake-enhanced snow. By late Friday and into Saturday an additional 2-5" of snow is expected for some resorts in lower Michigan. As of now, this favors resorts that usually see lake effect snow with west winds, so those in the western half of lower Michigan. 

Wisconsin:

Southeast Wisconsin resorts have the best odds of seeing 1-3" on Wednesday as the system that will bring a power day to lower Michigan clips the southern edge of the state. The rest of the state will see off-and-on snow showers through Thursday morning, with accumulations of a dusting to an inch or two.

Friday, more snow arrives with another couple of inches possible as a cold front poised to deliver the first arctic air since December swings through. 

Twin Cities: 

The Twin Cities will see off-and-on snow showers and light snow on Wednesday with a dusting to a few inches possible.

Here are the HRRR forecast precipitation types showing light snow showers on Wednesday:

Friday a strong cold front will bring another round of light snow, with a couple inches possible. Wednesday - Friday will be the last of the milder days before the cold air arrives this weekend, however, Friday will be quite windy with falling temperatures. 

Saturday - Sunday:

Sunday another system may impact the southern portion of the Midwest, bringing some light snow. 

In addition, the first wave of arctic air arrives this weekend with temperatures for some resorts struggling to reach the double digits above zero for highs by Saturday. With the cold air and bitter wind chills expected, we could see impacts to operations starting as early as Saturday.  

The main story for late January into early February will be the consistent periods of well below-normal temperatures for much of the Midwest and periods of light snow and lake-effect snow. 

The next best chance of widespread snow looks to be around Tuesday, January 31 into Wednesday, February 1st. Beyond that, models are in poor agreement, but do appear to keep lake effect snow going and some light snow chances through the first week of February. 

It does look like we get some relief from the colder air around the first full week of February (Feb. 6-12) as we return to temperatures that are closer to normal if not above normal. 

-Croix

Updates on Powder Tracker and Nordic Locations:

Thank you to everyone that has submitted nordic ski locations - love it! Keep them coming! Please use this form to submit any locations you would like to see added. I am about 50% done compiling a list of nordic locations to be added to the platform. 

I'm still working on creating a "powder tracker" for the Midwest and I hope to have a first draft by sometime in February. However, there are some issues with data feeds and if those continue, I may have to delay the powder tracker until next season, sadly.

Social Media Profiles:

• Twitter
• Facebook

Road Conditions:

• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Wisconsin

Regions:

North Shore Lake Superior/Northeast Minnesota
Giants Ridge, Spirit Mountain, Mont du Lac, Lutsen, Bearskin, Loch Lomond, Mount Baldy

UP/South Shore Lake Superior/Lake Effect Snow Belt
Birkie, Whitecap, Powderhorn, ABR, Porkies, Snowriver, Ripley, Bohemia, Marquette Mtn, Ski Brule, Pine Mtn, Searchmont

Twin Cities Region
Trollhaugen, Wild Mountain, Powder Ridge, Hyland Hills, Afton Alps, Buck Hill, Welch Village, Mount Kato, Coffee Mill

Central Wisconsin
Granite Peak, Paul Bunyan, Nordic Mtn

Southern Wisconsin Region
Mt La Crosse, Cascade, Devil's Head, Tyrol, Little Switz, Sunburst, Wilmot, Alpine Valley(WI), Sundown(Iowa), Chestnut(Illinois)

Northern Lower Michigan/Traverse City Region/Lake Effect Snow Belt                                        Boyne Highlands, Nub's Nob, Boyne Mtn, Shanty Crk, Crystal Mtn, Caberfae, Treetops, Otsego

Southwest Lower Michigan/Grand Rapids Region/Kalamazoo Region/Lake Effect Snow Belt
Cannonsburg, Bittersweet, Timber Ridge, Swiss Valley

Southeast Lower Michigan/Eastern Michigan/Detroit Region
Mt Holly, Pine Knob, Mt Brighton, Alpine Valley(MI)