When it comes to snow plowing, the Keweenaw County Road Commission takes things seriously. (Photo courtesy of Keweenaw County Road Commission)

KEWEENAW COUNTY — With the latest “snow event” on Wednesday and Thursday morning, Keweenaw County recorded a snowfall total of 6 inches, bringing this season’s total snow on the ground to 20 inches.

Relying heavily on winter tourism, many cities and towns across the Upper Peninsula vie for the snowiest location. But, Travel Ironwood had compiled a list of the snowiest places in Michigan. To be fair to its own region, travelironwood.com excluded the real contenders for the top honor.

Ironwood, the site claims, is one of the snowiest places in the Upper Peninsula, receiving close to 200 inches of snow annually, and “Is a winter adventurer’s dream come true.”

Sault Ste. Marie, by comparison, receives from 100 – 150 inches (a mere 12.5 feet) per year.

“While the U.S. average snowfall is around 28 inches,” Travel Ironwood says, “the Upper Peninsula of Michigan often gets over 200 inches of snow in many of its towns and cities!”

 Delaware, in Keweenaw County, labels itself as the Snow Capital of the Midwest. While Sault Ste. Marie gets between 100 and 150 inches of snow per season, Delaware’s, average annual snowfall is 240 inches (a respectable 20 feet) dating back to 1910 when records began to be kept on such important things.

And while Delaware boasts of 240 inches per season, Copper Harbor claims an annual snowfall of 270 inches. The city of Houghton, meanwhile averages a paltry 202 inches, according to Travel Ironwood.

The contender for snow capital, at least for the U.P., is Munising, in Alger County. Munising, rightfully so, boasts of being the Snowmobiling Capital of the Midwest, averaging a whopping 300 inches (25 feet) of snow per season.

Keweenaw County Road Commission Engineer/Manager Greg Kingstrom said that so far, his county is way behind Munising for snowfall.

“Really, we haven’t gotten nearly the snow like Munising and some areas of Western Marquette County have gotten in the past couple of weeks,” Kingstrom said. “We’ve gotten some lake effect snow, but it’s nowhere near what they got in Munising and southeast of there.”

As of Dec. 5, according to funintheup.com, Munising had a total of 57.5 inches of snow, with 29 inches on the ground. On the same date, Mt. Horace Greeley, in Keweeenaw County, recorded a a seasonal total of 38.5 inches, with 14 inches on the ground.