Bails of Hay, photo by JSmith Photo.
Jeffrey Smith says he took these during and aerial shoot over over Isabella County out of the window of a single prop Cessna on November 8th.
This photo is available bigger as are all the pics in his Frames on a Plane set (slideshow).
now that’s a corn maze, photo by hardyc.
Have aliens come to Michigan corn fields to practice their circular mischief and are they secretly hockey fans? Not this time, as Chris explains:
Pilot Mike took me up for a nice fall color tour. We came across several corn fields and a few corn mazes. Near then end we found what I think is the Ultimate corn maze. Red Wing logo must have taken some time. Very cool
Be sure to check this out bigger and Go Wings!
Speaking of corn mazes, there’s still time to find a Michigan corn maze or haunted attraction near you via Absolute Michigan!
Grand Island North Light 2, photo by Shawn & Brian Malone
The page on Grand Island North Lighthouse from Terry Pepper’s Seeing the Light begins:
Eight miles in length, and three miles in width, Grand Island is the largest island on Superior’s south shore. Long known by fur traders for the natural harbor of refuge on the island’s southern lee, the North West Company established a post on the site of present day Munising in the late 1700’s, and subsequently the American Fur Company operated a post on the Island itself during the early decades of the nineteenth century. The hay days of “King Fur” were fading into memory when Abraham Williams, the island’s first permanent white settler arrived from Vermont in 1837 and set up homesteading in a couple of the old abandoned trading post buildings on the island’s south shore. As other settlers began arriving to eke an existence from the island’s shores, Williams established a trading post, blacksmith’s shop and sawmill on the island.
In 1853 Congress appropriated $5,000 for a new lighthouse at the top of a 175-foot cliff on the northern end of the island, but materials used were so inferior that the light had to be completely demolished and rebuilt in 1867. It served for almost 100 years before being decommissioned and sold to Dr. Loren Graham, author of “A Face in the Rock,” a chronicle of the rich native heritage of the island. There’s more great photos of the lighthouse including this one by Jeff Shook and a shot from 1905.
You can buy a copy of this photo right here and check out more of their Lake Superior lighthouses.
If you’re looking for some chilly reading on a warm fall day, The Surfer’s Journal is running a ten page story in their summer issue featuring photos that the Malones took at a Grand Sable Dunes surfing session in January of 2009.
DSC_0387, photo by Jennifer Kleinheksel.
Like many lakes along the Lake Michigan shore, Silver Lake is a bay of the prehistoric Lake Nipissing that was closed in by coastal sand dunes. The Silver Lake Dunes Area’s fishing page says that Silver Lake is great fishing hole for Walleye, Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass, Northern Pike, Bluegill, and Black Crappie, while you enjoy the scenic beauty of the Sand Dunes. It’s part of Silver Lake State Park and you can see the view looking back at the lake from the air on Wikipedia.
Be sure to check this out bigger and also Jennifer’s Silver Lake set (slideshow).
This photo is part of Paul’s Detroit Aerial Photography set (slideshow).
Be sure to check it out bigger.
Au Sable River, photo by Marge Beaver
Today’s photo comes from my coffee table … or more precisely a book that’s on my coffee table. The book is Above the North and it features the photography of Michigan aerial photographer Marge Beaver. 
From the inside cover:
“These stunning bird’s-eye views offer rare and beautiful glimpses of northern Michigan’s unique terrain from the lofty perch of photographer Marge Beaver’s camera lens. Beaver’s breathtaking four-season photographs transform our view of Michigan into a magical land. From the Sleeping Bear Dune in winter with its vertiginous sandy edifice, to a Coast Guard cutter shattering the icy Straits, to the ghostly silhouette of a sunken ship and the brilliant turquoise waters of Crystal, Torch, Elk, Charlevoix, and Glen lakes, these are images of Michigan as you’ve never seen her before. All of these, plus arresting photographs of orchards in snowy-white bloom, winding rivers, and city harbors make this book a collector’s item for anyone who loves Michigan.”
Marge’s web site has great aerial shots from Alpena to White Lake and points in between. Check out her aerials of marinas & harbors, lighthouses, Detroit and many more locations in and out of Michigan. You can check out a cool interview with Marge right here.
Michigan Meltdown, photos courtesy Great Lakes Coastwatch
Usually when I want to blog about something in particular, the Absolute Michigan pool on Flickr has what I need. In this case, however, I think that everyone may have been out enjoying the amazing thaw that happened across the state yesterday as Mother Nature dropped the hammer on Old Man Winter, shattering record highs all across the state. From Marquette (48.5) to Detroit (59), the state of Michigan basked in springlike weather. Even Pellston aka “The Icebox of the North” managed to set a new record high (54).
Fortunately, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) had their eyes in the sky on the job and dramatically captured what happened in just a few days. You can check these pictures out at Great Lakes Coastwatch and also right here in my Flickr where it should be big enough for some nice wallpaper. I used Lake Michigan because there seemed to be clouds everywhere else (and I’m a total homer). You can click the pic at the right to see the statewide view yesterday and also the Coastwatch link above for live satellite views!
Icy Great Lake by {D} and As Far As The Eye Can See by siskokid
I’ve been talking a lot about the amazingness of this winter, but it’s even better to show it to you. I think these two photos, taken just half a day apart, can be entered into the record as Exhibit A.
Dominique took a flight from Charlevoix to Beaver Island the other day and brought back some great pictures of the huge amount of ice that our uber-winter has spawned on Lake Michigan. Be sure and check this out bigger and also have a look at her ice slideshow.
Meanwhile, hundreds of miles away at Little Girl’s Point on the far western end of the Upper Peninsula, Jim saw ice fields as far as the eye can see. Bigger is better.
Mother Nature seems to agree this winter, and I hope you get a chance to get out and have a little Michigan frozen fun this weekend!
Campus panorama 1940s, photo by Orchard Lake.
I noticed that Memorial Day Weekend is the time of the annual St. Mary’s Polish Country Fair & Festival on Orchard Lake. The event billed as “America’s Largest High School Fair” and is a fundraiser for Orchard Lake Schools and you can get an idea of what has changed (and what hasn’t) in this aerial view of Orchard Lakes Schools.
You can see a lot more cool old photos of the seminary in the Orchard Lake photo set from the Adam Cardinal Maida Alumni Library at the Orchard Lake Schools.
Foggy morning, photo by MiSkyPig
Here’s a unique view of the city of Detroit, the Detroit River and Lake St. Clair on a misty September morning from (more or less) above Fort Wayne. Here’s a Google Map to help you orient.
Bob has several more aerial photos you might want to check out.
Michigan in Pictures 
