Heavenly curtain at the Phoenix Church

A special Sunday “I changed the cover of the Michigan in Pictures Facebook” edition of Michigan in Pictures.

God is Light

God is light, photo by Jiqing Fan

The Keweenaw County Historical Society page about their Phoenix Church in Houghton explains:

St. Mary’s Church was built in 1858 to serve the Catholic residents in the nearby mining community of Cliff, scene of the area’s first major copper discovery in 1844. Services continued until 1899 when the church was dismantled and reassembled in Phoenix, where it was renamed The Church of the Assumption. Masses were held until 1957, when the last service marked a century of providing spiritual guidance to mining families and their descendants.

In 1985 the Keweenaw County Historical Society took over the property and began extensive repair and restoration work. The church now appears much as it did when folks from another century knelt in prayer, a fitting memorial to one chapter of Keweenaw’s proud heritage. Although now deconsecrated, the church is still used for weddings and memorial services.

More on Pheonix Church from the Keweenaw County Historical Society.

View his photo bigger on Flickr and see more in his Houghton & UP Mich slideshow.

More northern lights and more churches on Michigan in Pictures.

Waltz Hour at the Earthwork Harvest Gathering

Earthwork Harvest Gathering Waltz Hour

The Waltz Strings, photo by Myrna Jacobs

Next weekend I will be on my way to the annual Earthwork Harvest Gathering at Bob Bernard’s Earthwork Farm near Lake City to help the incredible crew of people who put together this uniquely Michigan festival.

It’s a weekend packed full of tremendous musicians on 4 stages, engaging workshops and a wide range of activities for all ages. As Myrna writes, the Waltz Hour held in the farm’s cozy and acoustically amazing barn is definitely one of the highlights:

This whole thing was so absolutely wonderful. The floor was full of people waltzing. I felt like I was in a dream.

View Myrna’s photo bigger on Facebook and definitely check out her #EarthworkHG album.

Detroit Skyline from Belle Isle

James Scott Fountain Detroit Background

Motor City, photo by Art Bukowski

I’ve featured a number of photos of the James Scott Memorial Fountain on Belle Isle on Michigan in Pictures, but never one with this view. Pretty cool!

View Art’s photo bigger on Facebook.

#TBT: Beach Day at Port Austin

Beach Day at Port Austin Lake Huron

Beach Day at Port Austin, photo courtesy Don Harrison/UpNorth Memories

I believe this spot is now the Port Austin Harbor, but if you’re looking for a swim, the Port Crescent State Park on Lake Huron looks pretty great!

Check the photo out background big and see TONS more pics mainly from Michigan in Don’s massive UpNorth Memories Photo Tribute to Michigan Historian Dave Tinder slideshow.

More beaches, more Lake Huron and more Throwback Thursdays on Michigan in Pictures!

Waterfall Wednesday: Big Pup Falls

Big Pup Falls

Big Pup, photo by Kim Nixon

Travel Marquette shares:

Big Pup Creek Falls (Lat. N46 Degrees 42′ 42″ Long W87 Degrees 42′ 14″) is located from Marquette – Travel County Road 550 north toward Big Bay approximately 23 miles to County Road 510. Travel about 7 miles (you will cross the steel bridge which spans the Yellow Dog River as directed for Yellow Dog (River) Falls). Drive approximately 2 miles farther on the winding road. Just before the bridge about 60 yard. Park safely off to the side of the road before the bridge. Walk down the hill off the road right of way to the falls.

View Kim’s photo bigger, see more in her September 2012 slideshow and follow her at Photography with Kim on Facebook.

FYI, there’s now 134 waterfall posts on Michigan in Pictures!

Twilit Aurora from the Keweenaw Peninsula

Twilit Aurora Borealis

Twilit Aurora, photo by Eric Hackney

Wowzas!!! Here’s the northern lights as seen last night from the Keweenaw Peninsula. Space Weather is saying that there’s a good chance of more strong northern lights tonight!

I’ve written about the science behind the colors on the Northern Lights, but how about some highlights of the beliefs about colors of the aurora from ancient people around the world?

In Bulfinch’s Mythology, Thomas Bulfinch claimed in 1855 that in Norse mythology: The Valkyrior are warlike virgins, mounted upon horses and armed with helmets and spears … When they ride forth on their errand, their armour sheds a strange flickering light, which flashes up over the northern skies, making what men call the “aurora borealis”, or “Northern Lights”.

The Algonquin think the lights are their ancestors dancing around a fire.

The northern lights in Scotland were known as “the mirrie dancers” or na fir-chlis. The dance often ended in a fight – “the mirrie dancers bled each other last night”. The appearance of the lights also predicted bad weather.

In Latvian folklore the aurora borealis, especially if red and observed in winter, are fighting souls of dead warriors especially if it is red and seen in the winter. It is an omen foretelling disaster.

Russian folklore associates the northern lights with the fire dragon (“Ognenniy Zmey”). The dragon came to women to seduce them when their husbands were gone.

The Finns named the northern lights revontulet, or fox fires. According to their legend, foxes made of fire lived in Lapland. And, the fox fires were the sparks they took up into the atmosphere on their tails.

Click for more including photos!

View Eric’s photo bigger and see more in his 9-7-15: Northern Lights V slideshow.

Many more Michigan aurora pics on Michigan in Pictures!

Salute to Michigan’s Workers on Labor Day

Detroit Industry Mural Diego Rivera

Detroit Industry, photo by Maia C

A very happy Labor Day to everyone and also a salute the generations of hard-working Michiganders whose struggles helped to build the society we have today.

View Maia’s photo background big and see more in her Rivera Court, Detroit Institute of Arts slideshow.

More Labor Day and more about the Diego Rivera murals at the Detroit Institute of Art on Michigan in Pictures.

Caribbean of the North

Carribean of the North

Caribbean of the North, photo by Cory Genovese

A while back I featured this as the cover photo on twitter.com/michpics. It’s so great I had to share it here as well! Cory wrote:

A day trip kayak cruise with a couple of friends on Lake Superior resulted in us finding ourselves in the “Caribbean of the North”…albeit with the pool heater unplugged ;)

Indeed! View the photo bigger and see more Lake Superior amazingness from Cory and be sure to follow him at facebook.com/PhotoYoop!

Bumper to Bumper

Tailgating

Tailgating, photo by Michael Seabrook

“Just pay attention when you’re behind the wheel. If you can’t drag yourself away from your cell phone, just lock it in the trunk.”
~ Lt. Michael Shaw, Michigan State Police

Here’s hoping that everyone who’s traveling this weekend (that’s 1.2 million Michiganders) can practice safe driving this weekend. Labor Day is our deadliest holiday – pay attention and please don’t drink & drive.

Michael took this shot of Two P-51s and a Spitfire flying in formation at the 2015 Thunder Over Michigan Air Show in Ypsilanti. He says the perspective makes them look closer than they really are. View his photo bigger and see more in his Airshows slideshow.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Weird Wednesday: Hamlin Lake UFO

Strange Sunset on Hamlin Lake

Strange Sunset, photo by Craig Downing

On the last Wednesday of every month I used to do a “Weird Wednesday” feature in conjunction with Linda Godfrey. She’s still going strong and you can follow her findings at LindaGodfrey.com.

This isn’t one of Linda’s stories, but I thought I’d share it for old times sake. Via the Mutual UFO Network:

I am now age 78 but when I was about 6 or 7 and messing in the dirt with ants on the dirt dead-end road in back of the cottage about 10 miles outside of Ludington, Michigan, I saw a saucer like object flying toward me; it then stopped over Hamlin Lake and after a second, went back the way it came from the other side of Hamlin Lake and on perhaps in the direction of Lake Michigan. It didn’t make any noise and I didn’t see any windows. It just looked like a flying saucer.

The speed was relatively slow and it seemed to stop for a moment over about the middle of the lake there and then reverse course going back in the direction it had come as if to say, “Oh, I’m going in the wrong direction” I don’t know why I recall this event today as if it happened yesterday. I wish I didn’t. I recently saw on T.V. the Lake Michigan triangle between Benton Harbor, Manitowac and Ludington.

You can head over to MUFON for more reports. As to what’s actually happening over to Hamlin Lake, the Sunrays – Crepuscular rays page at Atmospheric Optics explains:

Sun rays, also called crepuscular rays, streaming through gaps in clouds are parallel columns of sunlit air separated by darker cloud shadowed regions. The rays appear to diverge because of perspective effects, like the parallel furrows of freshly ploughed fields or a road wide at your feet yet apparently narrowing with distance. Airborne dust, inorganic salts, organic aerosols, small water droplets and the air molecules themselves scatter the sunlight and make the rays visible.

View Craig’s photo bigger and see more in his Ludington slideshow.

Lots more Michigan weirdness on Michigan in Pictures!