Snow place like home: The world’s most badass winter cities (PHOTOS)
Winter has arrived with a vengeance in much of the northern hemisphere, and with it comes the friendly rivalries between the hardiest – and most badass – cities.
Our international team of journalists scoured the internet for the best examples of character-building snowy metropolises and turned up some pretty spectacular images.
Moscow, Russia
Temperatures have been steadily decreasing since the New Year and Russia’s capital finally had its first proper snowfall of the season, which dropped up to 25 centimeters of the white stuff (9.8 inches) this week.
Have a look at #winter fairytale in #Moscow!
https://t.co/sJa0iHgrtQpic.twitter.com/lbQbF9xU3R
— Sputnik (@SputnikInt) January 13, 2016Snow time #Moscowpic.twitter.com/u22WOKCQ2j
— Danielle Ryan (@DanielleRyanJ) January 13, 2016Montreal, Canada
Like Moscow, the average winter temperature in Métropole du Québec hovers around zero degrees Celsius, but in the land of the cold-weather nectar called maple syrup, snow isn’t enough to slow commuters down, whether getting around via bus or bicycle.
In Montreal nothing puts us off our cycling. #Montreal#bike#parcmontroyal#blizzard#snowpic.twitter.com/pVrRZk96Oy
— Anne Kostalas (@viewfromalake) December 12, 2014Chicago, USA
Windy City winters dip below zero Fahrenheit (-18 Celsius) on a regular basis and a former mayor lost re-election for not properly removing 21 inches (53.34 cm) of snow that piled up in less than two days. One winter brought more than 80 inches and in 1985, temps bottomed out at -27 F (-33 C) with a wind chill of -77 F (-60 C). Despite the certainty of wild weather, these fowls failed to fly far enough south this winter and instead had to learn how to ice skate.
Duluth, USA
It’s hard to say how much Bob Dylan’s birthplace influenced his music, but the answer to what’s blowin’ in Duluth’s wind is sunrise sea smoke. And you might meet some foxy friends while exploring brownstone ice caves on frozen Lake Superior, the world’s largest freshwater body.
Marquette, USA
East of Duluth, also along the shores of Lake Superior, snow falls in November and melts in March. In between, this Upper Peninsula Michigan city endures sub-zero temperatures and waves tall enough for surfing.
One human polar bear, simply known as Surfer Dan, regularly braves the elements and gets an icy beard like Santa Claus. This alone makes Marquette pretty badass. Oh, and did we mention the frickin’ laser beams on the snow plows?
He's known around Marquette as Surfer Dan, Hardcore Dan, and King of the North Shore Mainland, and he was out today on Lake Superior near Presque Isle.READ here - http://bit.ly/1PV3i0X
Posted by TV6 & FOX UP on Tuesday, 12 January 2016
Posted by Keith Glendon on Tuesday, January 12, 2016
Cold Rolled | Fat Bike Snow Biking | Marquette, Michigan #fatbike ping @mika_nurmihttps://t.co/VXYHTBfzm9
— Esa Kukkasniemi (@Esa_Kukkasniemi) December 16, 2015Posted by Keith Glendon on Tuesday, January 12, 2016
Fargo, USA
They say that somewhere under all the snow is $920,000, but Fargo’s more than just a fictional film and TV series. It’s North Dakota’s biggest city where pizza delivery drivers make $20 an hour thanks to the recent oil boom. While the black gold won’t last forever, the white stuff comes back year after year.
Some nice #snow falling in #Fargo Moorhead today! https://t.co/bEc52gg3PU
— Fargo-Moorhead (@FargoMoorhead) January 7, 2016Surprise snow in Fargo, #NDwx last night and this morning. Reports of 13" in spots! pic.twitter.com/9BhnJzfQPX
— Ed Vallee (@EdValleeWx) January 7, 2016Tromsø, Norway
The only city on this list inside the Arctic Circle, it’s hard to melt the snow when there’s no sun. That doesn’t mean the sky is completely dark though, as the Northern Lights put on quite a show. And if you’re feeling particularly badass, camping is free.
only -11 in #tromso , I see the UK is in panic mode about a little bit of snow, these guys just get on with it. pic.twitter.com/bBJzXlb7OS
— Adam H (@Jivarny) January 13, 2016A wonderful picture of the snow covered Arctic Cathedral in #Tromso, @Northern_Norway. Magical and so inviting. pic.twitter.com/xlf2tHqzOF
— Sunvil (@SunvilTeam) January 5, 2016@NorthLightAlert there is no #NorthernLights today in #tromso, but there is a lot of snow ;-) #WhiteChristmaspic.twitter.com/lSOb1EYA9d
— Martin Pedersen (@MartinP140387) December 14, 2015Sapporo, Japan
The only Asian city on the list was the first city outside Europe and North America to host the Winter Olympics and has its own badass snow festival every February.
Sapporo Hibiya Park. This is where the famous Snow Festival takes place in February. They're setting up for it now. pic.twitter.com/TAaiDkWlgh
— AMERIKAJIN (@jiyunaJP) January 9, 2016#new post on our blog: Remembering the 2015 Sapporo Snow Fest https://t.co/TjgJWbaUXYpic.twitter.com/LQHJUI8unr
— Odigo (@OdigoTravel) January 12, 2016Sapporo Snow Festival, Japan。 pic.twitter.com/adEWek0ypv
— 世界中の風景まとめ集 (@fukei_matome) January 2, 2016皆様、お疲れ様でした。
札幌は積雪が少ない状態ですが、今年も「第67回札幌雪まつり」の準備が始まりました。2月5日開幕します。
今日もお付き合いありがとうございました。おやすみなさい🌠 pic.twitter.com/mOyxifI06U
— シェル&キン (@31074355aa) January 7, 2016Buffalo, USA
Lake effect snow can make this rust belt city in upstate New York beautiful, assuming you can see more than an inch in front of your face. And if you get too cold, you can always warm up with their famous hot wings.
Cool time-lapse video of the latest snow hitting Downtown #Buffalo. Distinct line off the lake @WGRZ#StormTeam2pic.twitter.com/kqiVN4LA35
— Michael Wooten (@wgrzMichael) January 12, 2016Edmonton, Canada
While Calgary deserves an honorable mention for the largest indoor pedestrian network in the world, Edmonton is 300 kilometers to the north and has a 13 kilometer network of climate-controlled links through most of its downtown. They also have an ice castle and a cross-country ski rack at light rail stations for those who prefer to commute outside.
Bravo, brilliant @shaunalrae and everyone who helped build #ski2LRT. More! http://t.co/TZE0RgZ30P#makesomethingyeg
— SkiLife (@citynordic) February 1, 2015Goodbye #edmonton goodbye snow. Hello summer. @freethetomatoespic.twitter.com/sokVxunQBR
— Miranda (@ECHtravelblog) January 6, 2016It's a frosty one today in #yeg#bundleup get out your woollies it's planning to snow tonight! #Edmontonpic.twitter.com/y96XrZU2GI
— kimberly fehr (@kifehr) January 5, 2016@scott_lilwall made this interactive map of my wrong turns in Edmonton's pedway system. Do you get lost? #cbc#yeg
http://t.co/1PuKPaf739
— Partsinevelos (@KristinaParts) August 18, 2013
