Does the Hudson Bay produce lake-effect snow?

Lake effect snow is most often associated with the Great Lakes region of the United States. However, there are at least two other places where this phenomenon also occurs: the east shore of Hudson Bay in Canada and the west coasts of the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido off of Japan.



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Lake-effect snowstorms occur in only three places in the world: around the Great Lakes (see map of snow belts), the east shore of Hudson Bay in Canada, and along the west coast of the Japanese islands of Honshu and Hokkaido.

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Lake Erie is the only lake that routinely freezes each winter, and once it does, lake effect snow seldom occurs. In the U.S. lake effect snow commonly occurs across northern Wisconsin, western Michigan, northwestern New York, northwestern Pennsylvania and the Great Salt Lake in Utah.

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Syracuse, New York, directly south of the Tug Hill Plateau, receives significant lake-effect snow from Lake Ontario, and averages 115.6 inches (294 cm) of snow per year, which is enough snowfall to be considered one of the snowiest large cities in America.

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Anywhere! Lake effect snow can occur over any unfrozen body of water where the fetch is long enough to gather enough moisture to create snow. Lake effect snow can occur over Lake Tahoe, the Great Salt Lake, the finger lakes, and even has been reported over rivers in the Midwest!

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Lake-effect snow is a frequent contributor to our seasonal snowfall in Chicago and with Lake Michigan almost ice free, the lake-effect snow machine is open for business provided a cold wind is blowing in our favor in the right direction. Nearly 93% of the Great Lakes does not have significant ice cover.

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Luckily for people living near large lakes, lake effect snow generally slows down around February. That's when the lakes freeze over, making it impossible for the air to steal moisture away from the lake. Not surprisingly, Buffalo is one of the snowiest cities in the country.

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Mount Baker, Washington This mountain receives 641 inches of snow per year, which is one of the highest average annual snowfalls recorded anywhere in the world. This mountain also holds the United States record for the most snowfall measured in one winter.

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