Being that the Memorial Day weekend is almost upon us, I've always wondered what most people truly consider "Up North."
Is it just absolutely over the bridge or anything north of, say, Flint? I've always thought that if you draw a line across the state parallel to the tip of the thumb maybe that would be a good cutoff point. Thoughts?
If you go past Bay City on
Agreed. Bay City is
Agreed. Bay City is Michigan's Mason-Dixon Line.
"Michigan isn't going to lose a game" - Fielding Yost, 1901
Only on the East side.
I'd
Only on the East side.
I'd add Mt.Pleasant as the central divider, and Big Rapids as the divider for the west side of the state.
I might go as far north as Clare and Reed City, and use US-10 as the dividing line.
Mt. Pleasant is a worthy
Mt. Pleasant is a worthy dividing line, though I consider it an Up North town. A trip to Mt. Pleasant feels like a trip Up North - mine involved casino, golf, and the county fairgrounds one county over to hang out with Michigan's rednecks and see a Styx concert.
"We've beaten Michigan the last four years. So where's the threat?"
- Mark Dantonio
Blogging the Virginia Cavaliers at http://fromoldvirginia.blogspot.com/<
what the hell are you guys talking about?
bay city and mt pleasant are on the same latitude
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Mt+Pleasant,+Mount+Plea...
"Real n*gg*z do real things." -Braylon Edwards
Sure. But, growing up
Sure. But, growing up on the west side of the state, I never drove through Bay City and thought to myself, "now I'm up north." For me, that happened when I passed Big Rapids or Reed City, on US-131, Bay City's rough equivalents for West Michigan.
I grew up in Bay City and
I grew up in Bay City and graduated college in Mt Pleasant (CMU) and they are pretty much straight east and west from each other. As for a North/South divider, I completely agree... although I don't consider Mt P or Bay City to be "Up North," but anything past these cities qualifies.
You can actually find Pasties in the northern part of Bay City... on the west side for those familiar...
but they're all about the
but they're all about the same latitude. its that region that is the cut off.
"Michigan isn't going to lose a game" - Fielding Yost, 1901
Except that I consider Mount
Except that I consider Mount Pleasant an "Up North" town, but Bay City as the northernmost extension of southeastern Michigan where all the people are.
"We've beaten Michigan the last four years. So where's the threat?"
- Mark Dantonio
Blogging the Virginia Cavaliers at http://fromoldvirginia.blogspot.com/<
I grew up in Michigan and my
I grew up in Michigan and my friends and I always drew a circle around the Detroit area as a divider between Michigan and Detroit. That was the only way we "split" Michigan, we figured we were all up north already.
Semper Fidelis
ask anyone in florida and
ask anyone in florida and they'll say any place that has snow...
Nobody who puts a woolly hat
Nobody who puts a woolly hat on in 55-degree weather is qualified to determine what is Up North and what isn't.
"We've beaten Michigan the last four years. So where's the threat?"
- Mark Dantonio
Blogging the Virginia Cavaliers at http://fromoldvirginia.blogspot.com/<
I totally agree with that.
I totally agree with that. I'm currently living in Nashville and the office I work in had the AC running full force today (meaning the office was roughly 70). There were at least 3 people wrapped up in their coats and sitting on their hands complaining about the "cold".
I vote for north of Flint,
I vote for north of Flint, Lansing, and Muskegon--depending on the road. That said, I'm in Southern California; I think L.A. is "up north."
Living in LA, I think of the
Living in LA, I think of the Valley as northish, and anything north of that as NorCal, which is the Californian equivalent of Up North.
In San Fran
Here some people consider Sonoma/Napa wine country north, or Mendocino.
To me it is Redding.
my grandparents lived in saginaw
so that was the northern-most place i was familiar with. i got used to calling anything north of the majestic Zilwaukee Bridge "up north"
Trust me, I'm a scientist.
Co-signed
Living in the Metro Detroit area (though I was raised in the Lansing area) I always consider "Up North" to be anything past the Zilwaukee Bridge, though I will admit that some may consider it a little too far south to be really "Up North". Still, by the time I'm in Standish or West Branch, I've crossed a threshold.
Then, there are Da Yoopers who regard anyone south of the Mackinac Bridge to be a "Lowper" or a "Troll'. Its definitely a matter of perspective.
Up north
My grandma always used to say when the trees were between north and south of 75 that we were up north. I'd say that or the Ziluake Bridge are "up north"
I am TERRIFIED of that
I am TERRIFIED of that bridge... I freak out driving over it.
Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. - Ephesians 6:11
I remember going to Higgins Lake
I remember going to Higgins Lake from A2 when the Zilwaukee brige was a draw bridge. There used to be some massive backups when the bridge opened for a freighter.
When I was little I used to think Whitmore Lake was up north... "are we there yet?"
"I knew Bo Schembechler and you sir, are no Bo Schembechler!"
On a bit of a tangent
I've always had a hard time saying "Zilwaukee Bridge" with a straight face. Somehow that name is very funny to say.
Birch trees
are the key for me.
I've always considered Clare
I've always considered Clare the beginning of the North. The Zilwaukee Bridge works too.
I'd agree on Clare
Midland doesn't count as "Up North," though, so I'd vote against the Zilwaukee Bridge.
The 44th parallel works, but is a lot less practical.
I've always considered it to
I've always considered it to be north of the 45th parallel, personally. Once you've gone above the 45th there really aren't many people who would argue that you're not "up north". Almost everywhere south of there and you seem to find decently large pockets of resistance.
Going up north as a child
My dad and brother and I would always salute the 45th parallel sign on I-75 as we passed it as we were officially entering "up north".
"A flute with no holes is not a flute. A donut with no hole is a danish"
boundaries
Restricting myself to big roads (and risking overlap with other comments), I'd say anything north of:
* Sterling on I-75 (It becomes more woodsy around there, I think.)
* Clare on 127 (This is more true if you go west on 10; on 127 I think you need to reach Harrison.)
* Whitehall on 31 and whatever is at the same latitude on 131 (I think "north" is much farther south in the western part of the state.)
In general, I'd say that "up north" begins where the density of farming gets noticeably below its peak in the southern part of the state. (I'm not counting the orchards around Traverse City.)
"..."
This Yooper agrees
I live near Ann Arbor now, but I am from the Soo, and these geographic points feel right to me. On I-75, it is where US-23 heads off to Tawas. I think you're right on farming, but I also look for birch trees.
False. Four hours south of
False. Four hours south of Detroit, and you're in Kentucky, which is officially Down South. There's no way that driving four hours the other way doesn't get you Up North.
"We've beaten Michigan the last four years. So where's the threat?"
- Mark Dantonio
Blogging the Virginia Cavaliers at http://fromoldvirginia.blogspot.com/<
"and you're in Kentucky,
"and you're in Kentucky, which is officially Down South"
That's debatable depending where in the south you are. I live in the Deep South and people here don't consider it "down south" until you get to the Deep South.
Yeah, but I'll bet they like
Yeah, but I'll bet they like to include Kentucky bball when bragging about the ESS-EEE-CEE superiority.
"We've beaten Michigan the last four years. So where's the threat?"
- Mark Dantonio
Blogging the Virginia Cavaliers at http://fromoldvirginia.blogspot.com/<
I was actually surprised how
I was actually surprised how few people cared about that here.
You can tell that Kentucky is
You can tell that Kentucky is considered Down South as soon as you hear someone from Kentucky say "kun-TUCK-eh" ... I don't know where, but there's an "R" in there somewhere too...
I live in Atlanta, GA
Four hours south of Detroit, you're in Ohio.
I get your point though... I am from North Detroit, so I consider anything north of Flint to be Up North.
I used to live in Cincinnati,
I used to live in Cincinnati, and I could get from my apt to campus in 3.5 hours. That extra half an hour gets you to Northern Kentucky. So unless you hit bad traffic or you drive like a _____ you should be in Kentucky in 4 hours.
up north
up north for me is whenever i reach escanaba michigan!! up der in da yooper land!
And this from a guy
Living in Wisconsin, dontcha know.
Wisconsin...
...is a heckuva place.
As a matter of fact I like beer.
Czechoslovakia
It's like going into Wisconsin.
Being from the saginaw area,
Being from the saginaw area, I have to say anything north of gayling is "up north"
Me fail english thats unpossible!
Coming from southwest Michigan
I would say Ludington and north is "Up North". Or you could go by this metric: If you can see the Milky Way on a clear night, you're probably "Up North".
Support your local brewery!
relative |ˈrelətiv|adjective1
relative |ˈrelətiv|adjective1 considered in relation or in proportion to something else : the relative effectiveness of the various mechanisms is not known.• existing or possessing a specified characteristic only in comparison to something else; not absolute : she went down the steps into the relative darkness of the dining room | the companies are relative newcomers to computers.2 Grammar denoting a pronoun, determiner, or adverb that refers to an expressed or implied antecedent and attaches a subordinate clause to it, e.g., which, who.• (of a clause) attached to an antecedent by a relative word.3 Music (of major and minor keys) having the same key signature.4 (of a service rank) corresponding in grade to another in a different service.
It really doesn't matter the
It really doesn't matter the geographical location. I firmly believe that anywhere in the world where McDonalds in the hang out for high school kids on Friday night is officially up north.
So, um, everywhere is up
So, um, everywhere is up north then?
I dare you to hangout at a
I dare you to hangout at a Flint, MI McDonalds on Friday Night looking for High School Kids.
Valid, just saying that being
Valid, just saying that being bored and hanging out at a McDonalds/Starbucks/local fast food establishment knows no geographic area. It is the very essence of being a teenager.
Now if we were talking about the rural areas and you said Walmart, I'd be in total agreement with you.
You may be right. Walmart
You may be right. Walmart could hold the key to the up north dilema.
I always preferred Meijer
I always preferred Meijer over Wal-Mart
Me fail english thats unpossible!
Co-signed, Meijer is
Co-signed, Meijer is definitely the pinnacle of shopping super centers in this state.
"We alway's did feel the same, we just saw it from a different point of view"
If you go past Bay City on I-75, you are officially Up North.
"We've beaten Michigan the last four years. So where's the threat?"
- Mark Dantonio
Blogging the Virginia Cavaliers at http://fromoldvirginia.blogspot.com/<