The 4 Coldest Places in Michigan Will Send Shivers Down Your Spine

Michigan is a northern midwestern state with a big reputation. It’s famous for its world-class universities, breathtaking natural landscapes, incredible local produce and wine, and unique position as a “Great Lakes state.” This state also has incredible wildlife and is home to numerous species of plants and animals. However, Michigan also has a reputation for having some of the most brutally cold winters in the United States. Michigan residents can expect to get quite a few inches of snowfall and must prepare for the frigid temperatures and harsh cold that come with the winter months of the year. The state is one of extremes, including incredible cold weather. Yet there are a few parts of Michigan that get even colder than most. This article covers some of the coldest places you could visit during a Michigan winter. If you visit, be sure to bundle up!

4. Muskegon

The city of Muskegon, Michigan is a harbor town known for its history as a foundry town. Historically, it was an old port vital to commerce. Today, it is used for both commerce and recreation. Today, Muskegon is famous for its sailing, rowing regattas, fishing, and commercial shipping industries. It also has an important place as a city with one of the coldest temperatures in Michigan history on record. Over 100 years ago, in February 1899, Muskegon saw some of the coldest temperatures in Michigan history. At the time, the temperatures dropped to -30 degrees Fahrenheit. While the temperatures do not typically get that extreme, winter in Muskegon is a great opportunity to enjoy outdoor activities that require a good freeze. If you visit, you can enjoy snowshoeing, ice skating, ice fishing, and all kinds of other winter outdoor adventures.

3. Marquette

The city of Marquette is the largest city in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and a Lake Michigan shoreline city. This port city is known for its important position in trading and shipping, as well as its major mining industry and transportation of mined resources. In February 1979, Marquette saw some of the coldest temperatures in Michigan history with the recording of an incredibly low -34 degrees Fahrenheit. While some adventure-lovers enjoy extreme outdoor activities in Marquette, those who want something a bit more tame will love the opportunity to traverse miles of trails on snow shoe!

2. Sault Ste. Marie

Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, is a city in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and one of the most populated cities in the Upper Peninsula, second only to Marquette. Sault Ste. Marie sits on the St. Mary’s River, which flows between Lake Superior and Lake Huron and is part of the U.S. northern border with Canada. In February 1934, Sault Ste. Marie recorded bitterly cold temperatures that dropped down to -37 degrees Fahrenheit, tying the previous record previously set in 1868 for the coldest temperature in Michigan. That is not your typical Michigan winter, but it could happen again!

1. Lansing

Believe it or not, the standing record for the coldest temperatures recorded in Michigan did not come the state’s remote Upper Peninsula in the northernmost part of the state. Instead, the coldest temperature recorded was in Lansing, the state capital and home of Michigan State University. In February 1868, Lansing recorded freezing cold temperatures as low as -37 degrees Fahrenheit, setting a record that would eventually be tied by equally cold weather in the Upper Peninsula’s city of Sault Ste. Marie in 1934.

The Coldest Temperature Recorded in a Michigan Winter

Although these cities named above are among the coldest cities in Michigan, the state’s coldest temperature on record is far colder than any noted in the cities above. The coldest temperature recorded in Michigan is -61 degrees Fahrenheit. This astonishingly cold temperature was recorded in Vanderbilt, Michigan, on February 9, 1934. The tiny community of Vanderbilt is a village in Otsego County, about 10 miles north of Gaylord, which is considered the “heart of Michigan’s snow belt.” This beautiful part of Northern Michigan includes thousands of acres of forest land and plenty of opportunity for outdoor adventure – when the temperatures are not well below freezing!

In general, Northern Michigan, where Vanderbilt is located, is a very cold part of the state. There, winter temperatures regularly drop to -20 degrees Fahrenheit. However, temperatures as extreme as those seen on February 9, 1934 are still far from ordinary!

The photo featured at the top of this post is © AMCImages/iStock via Getty Images