AmSnow.com is now SnoWest.com
His site contains something for everyone. From November through March, there are daily weather forecasts, with an emphasis on frozen precipitation. When snow is on the ground, site visitors can click on maps of Minnesota, Wisconsin or Michigan to see current depths - a useful feature for riders seeking the best conditions. Throughout the winter, the site has live webcams showing conditions in John's own backyard, along a nearby snowmobile trail and at an assortment of snowmobile-friendly establishments.
Year round, there's the "Ask John" section, where readers can pose weather-related questions, and the ever-popular "Journal" where John posts an account of his daily life. During the off season, Dee's journal appears once or twice a week, with rambling tales about life in the Keweenaw, his various woodworking projects, hiking trips with his soon-to-be wife Nora and the adventures of his two Labradors, Burt and Baileys.
Throughout the sledding season, the journal appears more often, with postings every several days, chronicling John's life, but with more emphasis on winter weather. As a dedicated snowmobiler, John knows what his site visitors want. He regularly discusses winter storm systems, the phenomenon of "lake effect" snow caused by the Great Lakes, trail conditions in the Keweenaw and his own riding experiences.
John and several riding buddies operate a guide service, Keweenaw Snow Expeditions, and he often participates in powder busting runs throughout the peninsula.
"I pretty much get to ride whenever I like, and I do some KSE guiding myself," Dee says. "These guys have been riding in this area for many years, so they know where to find the powder and some of the best off-trail riding. I've really learned my way around the peninsula and enjoyed some great times with the KSE guys and their guests." Readers of his journal also have enjoyed Dee's recounting of those trips, along with photos.
"The site is a lot of work, and involves a considerable amount of time," Dee admits. "It all keeps me pretty busy, but I enjoy it."
So do sledders. Dee says the site averages more than half a million hits per day in the peak months of December through March. "Activity really drops off during the rest of the year," he says, "and throughout the summer the numbers are about 10% to 20% of peak activity."
John's regular readers have been with him through a lot of interesting times. When each of his dogs suffered some physical ailment, he got plenty of best wishes for them. When he endured a medical emergency himself (a heart scare, from which he bounced back quickly), he also received a lot of prayers and get-well messages. Down the road, his readers will be treated to an ongoing account of his next big project, the construction of a new log home - not far from one of the main snowmobile trails, of course!
It doesn't take long for a reader of Dee's journal to discover that he loves not only his wife and their two dogs, but also the Keweenaw Peninsula itself
"The people are great, the scenery is beautiful, the lake is incredible, the beaches are fantastic, and the snow conditions can't be beat. For me, this is definitely the place to be."
His enthusiasm is obvious, and by promoting the Keweenaw all winter as a prime snowmobiling venue it's apparent that his site is bringing a significant number of visitors to the area. And with his forecasting skills, the site is definitely a place that's on the map for web-savvy snowmobilers.
For information on snowmobiling and lodging on the Keweenaw Peninsula, call 866-304-5722(toll free) or via e-mail to info@keweenaw.org.
For information on Keweenaw Snow Expeditions, call 906-296-9184 or go online to
www.johndee.com/kse/default