Are you interested in moving to Escanaba? If so, it helps to understand some of the terms you’ll encounter. Here is a brief glossary to get you started:
UP: Shorthand for Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and almost always preceded by the word “the.”
Yooper: Folks who live in the UP. Visit Escanaba notes that the term is used so often that it can be found in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
Troll: If a Yooper lives north of – or above – the Mackinaw Bridge connecting Michigan’s lower and upper peninsula, then a “troll” is someone who lives south – or under – the bridge. Get it?
Pasty: New England has clam chowder and Maryland has crab cakes. Yoopers have the pasty, a popular beef, pork and vegetable hand pie that Visit Escanaba says Yoopers eat with ketchup. Trolls, the site says, prefer gravy.
Esky: If you’re in Escanaba and want to blend in, refer to the city as “Esky.”
The port city of Esky is the county seat of Delta County, and it sits on the west side of Little Bay de Noc, which opens into Lake Michigan’s Green Bay. It’s the third-largest city in the UP, with a population of roughly 12,450, ranking behind only Marquette and Sault Ste. Marie.
Iron ore mined from the Marquette Iron Range, along with UP lumber, was shipped from Escanaba in barges to supply the developing Midwest region around the time of the Civil War, according to Wikipedia.
Today, the economy is buoyed by healthcare, retail, manufacturing and government services. MGM Healthcare, OSF St. Francis Hospital, and local government are among the region’s larger employers.
People who love the outdoors and who no longer need to commute to an office are increasingly calling the UP home, and as a result, Escanaba’s real estate market has been one of the strongest performers in Michigan, according to Norada Real Estate.
In February 2026, Escanaba home prices were up 88.2% year over year, selling for a median price of $160K, considerably lower than the Michigan average of $259,600, according to Redfin. And the city has been actively pursuing revitalization efforts, including state-funded projects to convert vacant upper-floor spaces in downtown buildings into new apartments, according to the State of Michigan.
Speaking of the city’s downtown, the broad boulevard of Ludington Street is lined with shops, local dining spots, and brew pubs that anchor a lively commercial district.
And snow in the winter isn’t likely to keep you away. The city sits in what is known as the UP’s “banana belt,” according to Wikipedia. That means while most of the region is hit with significant lake-effect snow, Escanaba’s winters are considerably milder due to its location on the windward Lake Michigan shoreline. Escanaba actually receives less snow than Lansing and far less than Traverse City, according to Michiganbackroads.
