In the
United States, snowbelts are located southeast of
Lake Erie from
Cleveland, Ohio, to
Buffalo, New York, and south of
Lake Ontario stretching roughly from
Rochester, New York, over
Syracuse, New York, to
Utica, New York, and northward to
Watertown, New York. Other snowbelts are located on the eastern shore of
Lake Michigan from
Gary, Indiana, northward through
Western Michigan and
Northern Michigan to the
Straits of Mackinac, and on the eastern and southern shores of
Lake Superior from northwest
Wisconsin through the northern half of the
Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Portions of the snowbelt are located in
Ontario,
Canada, which includes the eastern shore of Lake Superior from
Sault Ste. Marie northward to
Wawa, as well as the eastern and southern shores of
Lake Huron and
Georgian Bay from
Parry Sound to
London. During the winter, north-westerly winds cause frequent road closures, with
Highway 21 on the Lake Huron coast and
Highway 26 south of Georgian Bay as far east as
Barrie, Ontario, being strongly affected. The
Niagara Peninsula and the north-eastern shores of Lake Ontario are especially hard-hit by heavy snowfall when south-western winds are predominant. Lake Erie is the shallowest and second smallest of the five Great Lakes. It can completely freeze over during winter. Once frozen, lake-effect snow over land to the east and south of Lake Erie is temporarily alleviated. This does not end the possibility of a damaging winter storm. The
Great Lakes Blizzard of 1977 that struck metropolitan Buffalo was a direct result of powder snow blown by high winds off Lake Erie, which had frozen earlier than normal. There was, for the region, no significant snowfall during the duration of the blizzard. The southern and southeastern sides of the Great Salt Lake in Utah receive significant lake-effect snow. Since the Great Salt Lake never freezes, the lake effect can influence the weather along the Wasatch Front year-round. The lake effect largely contributes to the annual snowfall amounts recorded south and east of the lake, and an average snowfall reaching in the Wasatch Range. The snow, which is often very light and dry because of the semiarid climate, is referred to as the "Greatest Snow on Earth" in the mountains. Lake-effect snow contributes to roughly six to eight snowfalls per year in Salt Lake City, with about 10% of the city's precipitation being contributed by the phenomenon. ==Effects of climate change==