1-3 On track to surpass last year's snowfall total  Graham Jaehnig ​ Mark Wilcox​ Map courtesy of National Weather Service

HOUGHTON — If current trends continue, the 2025-26 winter season could surpass last year’s total snowfall of 315.25 inches, the fourth snowiest winter on record.

As of Friday, the snowfall total for the 2025-2026 season so far was at 105.25 inches. That’s according to Visit Keweenaw. The Keweenaw County Road Commission recorded total snowfall for December was 72.75 inches, compared to 53.5 inches in December 2024, about 20 inches ahead of the previous year.

If this winter will surpass last year’s snowfall total is still up in the air according to Meteorologist Taylor Prislovsky, with the National Weather Service in Marquette. “It seems like we could trend that way, at least toward an above-normal snowfall year,” Prislovsky said. “Will we beat last year’s total? It’s really too far out for me to say.”

Prislovsky said based on what he has read and what he has seen from the Climate Prediction Center, it does look like above normal precipitation amounts are predicted, with slightly below-normal temperatures.

Prislovsky said since he came to the Upper Peninsula in 2019, he has seen inconsistencies regarding winter behavior.

“I’ve seen a few where we got hit really hard early on, and then nothing happened,” he said, “or nothing happens until February, then we really get hit hard for the rest of the winter.”

Prislovsky said with just having wrapped up the first one-third of the current winter, it is difficult to predict if this year will beat last winter, particularly with January, February and March to get through yet.

“I don’t know,” he said, ‘but it certainly seems like we’re technically on track, but considering how winters are up here, I just don’t know.”

While last year was the fourth snowiest winter, many local residents residents still recall the winter of 1978-1979, which was the snowiest in recorded history, with 355.90 inches.