McLain State Park Snowshoeing by Nathan Miller
The Keweenaw Road Commission shared last week that they’ve recorded over 300 inches of snow this winter. The 25 feet of snow is about 6 feet more than normal. While that’s definitely a whole lot, it’s 356 inches of snow recorded in the winter of 1978–79.
Nathan took this photo at the beginning of February at McLain State Park near Hancock on the Keweenaw Peninsula. See more in his McLain State Park Snowshoeing – February 2022 gallery on Flickr.
I found this photo from Mark a couple of months ago when I was looking for a photo of Leland Blue for Leelanau.com. Not what I was looking for, but this May 2021 sunset over the Manitou Passage in Lake Michigan is DEFINITELY a find!
Head over to Mark’s Flickr for his latest & for sure view and purchase his work at Leelanau Landscapes!
Golden Rays over Canada by Craig Hensley
Craig got this supersweet drone shot of downtown Detroit last week. In his photo you can see Belle Isle, the sun shining on Canada across the Detroit River at the left, the Renaissance Center towers in the center, and the art deco Guardian Building in the foreground.
See more great shots in Craig’s Detroit gallery & view and purchase his work on his website.
Petoskey Crucifix by Martin McReynolds
The Petoskey Visitors’ Bureau shares the story of the Petoskey Underwater Crucifix:
About 800 feet offshore and under 21 feet of water lies an Italian white marble crucifix, the only known freshwater-underwater crucifix. It came to Petoskey in 1962 in a round-about way, and has become a draw for divers and visitors alike ever since. You will not find a shrine like this anywhere else in the U.S.
The 11-foot tall crucifix, with a 5-foot 5-inch figure of Jesus Christ, was placed in the Bay, near the Petoskey breakwall at Bayfront Park, by the Wyandotte-based Superior Marine Divers Club in 1962. Its original intent was to honor Charles Raymond, a Southgate diver who drowned in Torch Lake. Later, the club expanded the focus of the monument to memorialize all those who have perished at sea.
Its origins date back to the late 1950s, when a grieving mother and father from Rapson in Michigan’s Thumb area had it crafted in memory of their son, Gerald Schipinski. Gerald was 15-years-old in 1956 when he was accidentally killed by a shotgun on the family farm.
After being crafted in Italy, the cross was broken during shipping to the Rapson Catholic church; the family rejected the damaged crucifix and it was sold in an insurance sale to the Wyandotte dive club. The crucifix made its way to Little Traverse Bay and was first placed by the U.S. Icebreaker Sundew 1,200 feet off the Petoskey breakwall on Aug. 12, 1962.
…in the early 1980s Dennis Jessick was president of the Little Traverse Bay Dive Club, and he proposed a winter viewing of the crucifix. The first was held in 1986, affording the community the chance to view the statue through a hole made in the ice. Lights are placed under water to help with viewing. The viewing of the crucifix,” as the locals call it, has continued.
The viewing of the Crucifix is always free and takes place if the ice is thick enough and other weather related conditions are right, usually in the end of February or early March. (NO VIEWING IN 2022) A tent is set up at the viewing area – which is a sure sign to the public that the viewing is taking place. It is also publicized in local media and on local Chamber of Commerce and Visitors’ Bureau web sites.
More at the Petoskey Visitors Bureau & for sure check out this article on the crucifix from Northern Michigan Mish-Mash for a ton more info & some photos. Not gonna lie – I was really hoping to see this in person this year, but unfortunately there won’t be a public viewing in 2022 as there usually is.
Martin took this photo back in 2009. Head over to his Well Liked gallery on Flickr for lots more great shots from Petoskey & elsewhere.
Victoria Dam & Falls December 2021-11 by Nathan Miller
The Waterfalls of the Keweenaw entry for Victoria Dam Falls has directions & says in part:
This section of West Branch Ontonagon River was once the home of the famous Ontonagon Boulder (a copper boulder now housed in the Smithsonian weighing almost two tons) and a tall, impressive waterfall. A dam and basin now covers both landmarks and only an overflow channel, one that is rarely flowing, remains. Viewing the drop is easy as it flows down from the opposite bank facing an access point.
Nathan took this back in December of 2021. For sure head over to Flickr to see this & other shots extra big in his Victoria Dam & Falls gallery.
Southern Flying Squirrel Showing Biofluorescene by Lee Rentz
Lee’s incredibly cool shot of a southern flying squirrel exhibiting biofluorescence when illuminated by a UV light source led me to this fascinating 2019 New York Times article on the discovery of ultraviolet fluorescence in squirrels:
One spring night in Wisconsin, John Martin, a biologist, was in his backyard with an ultraviolet flashlight. Suddenly, a hot-pink squirrel flew by.
It was a southern flying squirrel, a small, furry creature most active at dawn and dusk. Under most circumstances, it has a warm brown color. But in the beam of Dr. Martin’s flashlight, it sported a gaudy Day-Glo hue closer to something you might see in a nightclub or a Jazzercise class circa 1988.
“He told his colleagues at Northland College, but of course, everyone was pretty skeptical,” said Allison Kohler, a graduate student at Texas A&M University.
Dr. Martin asked Ms. Kohler, then a student at Northland, to look into it. After examining more than 100 specimens of flying squirrels across two museum collections and spotting five more squirrels under UV light in the wild, the researchers and their colleagues reported surprising results last week in the Journal of Mammalogy: The pink is real.
…What the flying squirrels get out of it is still a mystery. Confirming that the squirrels are even capable of seeing in ultraviolet wavelengths will require additional study, Ms. Kohler said.
The researchers have some hypotheses concerning what’s behind the squirrels’ Day-Glo displays. Ultraviolet rays are abundant during the dawn and dusk periods when the squirrels are moving around. So it is reasonable to expect that the fluorescence is visible to other organisms even when there are no biologists with UV flashlights in the vicinity.
The vivid pink color might have evolved to confuse the owls who prey on the squirrels. Those birds of prey fluoresce in precisely the same hue themselves; a flying squirrel may look, superficially at least, like a flying owl.
Or, if it’s confirmed that the squirrels see UV, the color might have something to do with mating or signaling to other flying squirrels.
“It could also just be not ecologically significant to the species,” Ms. Kohler said, noting that future work will delve into the question. “It could just be a cool color that they happen to produce.”
Head over to Lee’s Flickr for more shots of this squirrel & a friend!!
PS: Can I interest you in glow in the dark mushrooms?
Valentines Skies #2 by Gary Brink Photography
Gary took this stunning shot at Holland’s “Big Red” lighthouse on Valentine’s Day back in 2017. Head over to his Flickr for the latest & I hope that you all have a lovely week!
Upper Tahquamenon Falls by S Hughes Photos
S Hughes shared this sweet shot from a subzero sunrise the other day at the Upper Falls in Tahquamenon Falls State Park. Follow her on Facebook & for sure check out her video from the overlook!
Frozen Munising Falls, Michigan by Tom Clark
Tom took this shot last weekend at the 50-foot Munising Falls in the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. See more shots in Tom’s UP Trip for Ice 2-4-2022 album on Flickr & for sure zoom in for the crazy detail in this 5k photo!
The Winter Olympics open tonight, and I thought this stunning shot from the Grand Haven Ski Bowl that Kevin took back in 2010 is perfect for wishing all participants high flying & safe landing!
See more in Kevin’s Sports gallery on Flickr.
Michigan in Pictures 