Michigan Upper Peninsula Ski Resorts

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan has the best skiing in the Midwest of the United States. With regular lake-effect snow totals that top 300 inches of snow a year historically in some areas, snow levels can create long seasons. While vertical drops do not match those of Western resorts, snow quality does. Typical vertical drops range between 500 feet up to just more than 1,000 feet in one case.

  1. Western Upper Peninsula

    • The western area of the Upper Peninsula has the largest concentration of ski areas. These are near the towns of Ironwood, Wakefield and Bessemer. These areas include Big Powderhorn, Blackjack and Powderhorn. Although not in the Upper Peninsula, Whitecap is also nearby just over the border into Wisconsin. All of these areas have roughly 500-600 feet of vertical. All typically have good snow conditions resulting from lake-effect snow systems. All of these areas also are in close to good hotel facilities. Indianhead Mountain has the largest resort facilities at the hill of these areas.

    Central Upper Peninsula

    • The central sections of Upper Peninsula have three additional ski areas of note. Marquette, Michigan, has a long history with Marquette Mountain, which receives large amounts of lake-effect snow each year. Near the town of Iron River is Ski Brule. While Ski Brule does not typically receive as much lake-effect snow as other areas, it maintains a robust man-made snow making capability and typically has a long ski seasons. Just outside of the town of Iron Mountain is a slightly smaller hill, Pine Mountain. A good local hill for a day, Pine Mountain is also a ski jumping site that hosts events each winter. At each of these areas, lodging can be found in the nearby associated towns.

    Keewenaw Peninsula Area

    • Historically the area with the highest snow concentrations in the Upper Peninsula, the Keewenaw Peninsula has two ski areas. One is Mount Ripley, which is operated by Michigan Technological Institute, and the other is Mt. Bohemia. Mount Ripley is in Calumet adjacent to Houghton at the base of the Keewenaw Peninsula. This would be more likely categorized as a local ski hill than a resort. Mt Bohemia is slightly further north on the east side of the Keewenaw Peninsula and is the resort in the Upper Peninsula that boasts the highest vertical drop. It also has the highest snow totals historically and limits its grooming. Mt. Bohemia focuses on advanced skiers and offers some backcountry-style skiing. Also regularly categorized with the Keewenaw Peninsula area ski areas is Ski Porkies. Ski Porkies is a slightly smaller ski area in the Upper Peninsula's Porcupine Mountains near the town of Ontonogan on the western shore of the Upper Peninsula, roughly halfway between the towns of Ironwood and Houghton. Porkies also typically has good snow levels but has less resort services near it. Lodging for Mt. Bohemia and Mt. Ripley can be found in the towns of Houghton, Calumet and Copper Harbor, and the closest lodging to Ski Porkies can be found in the town of Ontonogan.