TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – According to the website “Thrillist,” Michigan ranks #3 on the list of states with the worse winters. They claim that “most of America is miserable” in winter and that there are “few states that you actually want to visit in colder months.” Not surprisingly, Hawaii, Florida and Arizona were ranked as the best states to live in the winter, which is not a remarkable finding since they usually lack the cold and the snow that the rest of us have. But they also lack the fun winter things to do – as we will expound on later in this article.

Rounding out the top of the list of miserable winter states at #2 was Minnesota and #1 was North Dakota. But one person’s “miserable” is another’s “cozy.” A recent list published by My Dating Adviser ranked Medora, North Dakota as one of the coziest small towns in America surrounded by “breathtaking, unspoiled nature.”

MORE NEWS: #1 MSU Splits B1G Hockey Series with #10 Michigan

Thrillist, a news and media website, is part of Vox Media and is known for creating lists and rankings for different locations and subject matters. They said in their review of miserable winter states, “For most Michiganders, at least in the lower, populated peninsula, this is winter. You leave work at 5 or 6 pm (the dead of night) to fight your way down some wretched stretch of highway where brown salt sludge spraying up of the road keeps you from determining whether it’s raining or snowing. Overnight, the road freezes, and when you wake up, it’s still dark. You scrape off your car, then get stuck in traffic as the cars ahead of you gawk at an SUV that has slid in a ditch.”

They continue, “You do not look forward to outdoor winter recreation because there is none, unless you pretend to enjoy cross-country skiing on very flat land. The sounds of revving snowblowers and snowmobiles will drive you to near madness…”

Michigan can take heart that they moved down the list in 2022. They were sitting at the #2 spot in 2021.

So what was the criteria that Thrillest used to pick the miserable winter states? They say, “After an intense period of research and debate among friends and colleagues—factoring in everything from weather patterns and average temperatures to how places deal with snowy roads and sidewalk sludge—we ranked each state’s winter from best to worst.”

With subjective criteria like that, who is to say what is best and worse? What is “miserable” to some is a delight to others. There are many folks, and pets, in Michigan who look forward to the winter months (and the snow) because they bring the fun of outdoor winter activities and the holiday season.

And how many times have we seen Santa’s workshop in the North Pole put on a list of ‘miserable places to be in the winter’? Sure, they have a lot of snow. But they also have a purpose. A reason for the season. Their motto is “Where the Spirit of Christmas Lives Year Round.”

MORE NEWS: Lions Shocked in NFL Divisional Round, Lose to Commanders 45-31

Yes, tourists actually DO come to Michigan because of the winter weather. And they come to northern Michigan as well specifically because there is MORE snow there. Mike Kent, Public Relations Manager for Traverse City Tourism, has plenty to say about his great city and the fun winter activities that visitors can find when they visit. When asked why people should come to Traverse City in the winter, he came up with a long list. A very long list.

He starts off by saying, “We have so much to offer…This area has become clearly a very strong four-season area of activity. It didn’t always used to be that way. It used to be a summer location and that’s it. There is so much to do in this area and has been for a very long time for all four seasons, winter being one of the strongest. In the winter, you’ve got skiing, snowboarding, fat tire biking, sledding, tobogganing…you have trail hiking….you take a winter trail at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore which is very close to Traverse City and you look out over the snowy paths and then get on top of a huge bank of sand dunes and you look out over Lake Michigan and it’s spectacular.”

He continues, “It was voted as the most beautiful place in America by ABC Good Morning America viewers…it doesn’t change in the winter. It’s just as spectacular in the winter as it is in the summer if not maybe even more so…”

He also talks about the Christmas season when Traverse City comes alive downtown with the lights and unique shopping experiences in the city and the unique communities scattered throughout the area. He mentions the lighthouses and the wineries and how the slower winter season is the perfect opportunity to visit the wineries and talk to the owners about their craft. He says, “This area is, more and more, being respected as one of the fasted and best wine-growing regions in the country and I’m hearing that not just with local writers, I’m hearing that with sommeliers, wine writers around the country and around the world..”

Kent also celebrates the great restaurants in Traverse City. He says, “There is so much to do in the Traverse City area… we haven’t even talked about the restaurants…the culinary…this area attracts a huge amount of creative people to the region. And that creativity comes in the form of music, theater, culinary… We have chefs that have been trained in some of the top restaurants in the world and they choose to live in Traverse City…So you find yourself at a table at a downtown Traverse City restaurant with a fireplace going and have this remarkable food put in front of you…a great opportunity, a great experience….”

He also lauds the local distilleries who are creating great winter spirits – and who doesn’t want a hot toddy in the wintertime?

Kent says, “This area is no longer a well-kept secret in the winter. It is an area that people go out of their way to come to and not just in the midwest but throughout the country.”

He concludes, “For us to be on that list as miserable places is laughable…”

Kent is clearly is a great fit for his job. His love and appreciation for Traverse City and Michigan, especially in the winter, is apparent. Just like Santa’s would be for the North Pole.

Life is what you make of it and so is snow. Just like lemons can become lemonade, snow can become a snowman (or woman), an artist’s canvas, a recreational wonderland, a venue for sports greatness or the biggest and most awesome snow fort ever made.

If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you.

In other words…PURE MICHIGAN.