Maps show heaviest incoming snowfall across Michigan, one spot could see 3 feet

UPDATE: Snow squalls, gusty winds lead to white-out conditions, hazardous travel in parts of Michigan

National Weather Service offices across Michigan have released a new set of snowfall forecast maps showing just how much accumulation we’re expected to get over the next few days.

We knew the Arctic air blast and lake-effect snow would turn us wintry very quickly after the holiday, but some of these anticipated snowfall totals look pretty big. The highest is an area near Sault Ste. Marie in the Upper Peninsula, which could see up to 34 inches of snow between tonight and Sunday, National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologists said.

Let’s take a look at the expected snowfall totals by area.

West Michigan: A Winter Weather Advisory is already in effect for much of West Michigan. NWS forecasts say we should expect a widespread accumulation of up to 4 inches of snow between now and Saturday morning, though some areas could see more than 7 inches. Some of the largest snowfall amounts are expected in the Cadillac area, and in southern Kent County stretching down to Kalamazoo County.

In some areas, snowfall rates could hit one inch per hour.

“With this being the first larger snow event and holiday weekend, make sure to take it slow in the snow if you need to travel,” NWS meteorologists in the Grand Rapids office said.

Southeast Michigan: An inch or two of lake-effect snow is expected.

Northern Michigan: More than a foot of snow is expected in the snowbelt areas over the next few days. Gaylord is shown in the snowfall bullseye on a couple different NWS maps, so we’ll have to see if accumulations there turn out to be the heaviest. One map shows anywhere from 18 to 25 inches of snow falling there by Sunday night. Blowing and drifting snow will also be a concern for motorists.

Upper Peninsula: Winter Storm Warnings are in effect for big chunks of the U.P., both on the west side from Iron Mountain to the Keweenaw Peninsula, and on the east side from just east of Marquette and stretching over to the Soo. NWS forecasters are calling this a “long-duration lake-effect” event.

“Ongoing lake effect snow will intensify tonight in the northwest wind snowbelts and continue through the weekend,” NWS meteorologists in Marquette said. “Please take caution if traveling through the holiday weekend across east and west Upper Michigan. Moderate to heavy snowfall rates are expected, leading to rapidly changing visibility and snow accumulation on roadways.”