Frozen in Time, 2014 edition

Posted on by farlane

Frozen in Time

Frozen in Time, photo by photofrenzy2000

2014 will never come this way again, so for better or worse, here are some 2014 highlights from Michigan in Pictures…

Cougar CamThe most popular post was Cougar Cam Confirmation, which was published on November 7th. Since I’ve been sounding the “cougars live in Michigan” horn for several years now, it’s gratifying that the DNR is now on board.

Isle Royale Star BreezeWith 77,000 views on Facebook, the cougar cam was the most popular post there too, followed very closely by Space Weather and Starbreeze that benefited from the Lake Superior Photo bump!

Paradise is the nickname of this placeShawn of Lake Superior Photo checked in with the second most popular pic, Paradise is the nickname of this place, a photo that features one of the amazing & out-of-the-way Michigan gems that I learned about in 2014.

Ice Caves Leelanau Peninsula by Ken ScottThe third most popular picture & story was one from close to my home, the astonishing The Ice Caves of Leelanau that drew tens of thousands of people to the Leelanau Peninsula last winter to see them. You can click that link to see Ken’s photos or save yourself the time and head over to his site to purchase his book, The Ice Caves of Leelanau.

Winter at Tahquamenon Falls John McCormickWeighing in at number four was Winter at Tahquamenon Falls by John McCormick aka MichiganNut. While this photo didn’t make his 2015 wall calendar, a dozen other great ones did!

Shadow Moon by Michael SeabrookClosing out the top five was the Blood Moon and the Lunar Eclipse Tetrad by Michael Seabrook. The first two of these four total lunar eclipses are in the books, but April 4 & September 28, 2015 are still to be seen.

Polar Vortex Cabin FeverThe top commented post was Michigan in Pictures is a blog, folks, which I posted after getting a bunch of negative comments after sharing a photo from a group working against the Keystone XL Pipeline coming through Michigan. It made me very happy to get support for protecting the beautiful natural heritage features on Michigan in Pictures from so many readers … and also to share the awesome photo of our cats!

View this photo from December of 2010 at the St. Joseph Lighthouse bigger and jump into photofrenzy2000’s slideshow for more awesome shots!

Happy 9th Birthday to Michigan in Pictures!

Posted on by farlane

Engine House 9

Engine Engine Number 9, photo by Rudy Malmquist

Back on December 30, 2005 I blogged the first photo to Michigan in Pictures. If you click that link, you can start at the beginning. Be warned though – as of today there’s 2,805 posts!!

Thanks to all of you for staying tuned and here’s hoping for many more years.

Rudy is one of the photographers who’s been contributing since the beginning. He notes that the former Engine House 9 in Grand Rapids is now the Mitten Brewing Company. View his photo background big and see more in his slideshow.

More birthday fun on Michigan in Pictures.

Snowy Topper

Posted on by farlane

Michigan Snowy Owl Winter

snowy12-28-4, photo by Dan Lockard

What’s on top of your tree this year? Right now in the Absolute Michigan photo group, we’re seeing a ton of snowy owls. While these arctic owls are not found in the summer, we are in their winter range, as the Michigan DNR’s Winter Visitors page shares:

Just because the leaves have fallen from the trees and there is a chill in the air is no reason to put away your binoculars. Winter offers unique viewing opportunities. Many of our summer resident birds migrate to warmer summer climates. Still, there are several species of birds that migrate from Canada and find Michigan the perfect winter temperature. Winter is the only time several of these species can be found in Michigan.

Two of the largest migrants are the snowy owl and the great gray owl. Snowy owls can be found moving into Michigan during winter when the food supply on the arctic tundra is in short supply. Snowy owls have been recorded as far south as Lansing, Michigan. Because they rarely see humans on their northern homes, they are not timid and can be easily viewed for long periods of time.

Friday’s Sault Star reported that about three dozen snowys were sighted during the annual Audubon Christmas Bird count on December 20th. That’s more than average. We’ll know if this is an irruption year after all the bird count numbers are released in January.

View Dan’s photo taken near Muskegon background big and see lots more (including a couple shots of the great gray owl) in his awesome Owls slideshow.

Lots more snowy owl pictures & information (including a couple more by Dan) in the Michigan in Pictures archives!

Root Beer Falls

Posted on by farlane
Tahquamenon Falls Root beer falls

Tahquamenon Falls, photo by Courtney Cochran

The Tahquamenon Falls are Michigan’s biggest waterfall and quite a sight to see in any season. It draws its name from the distinctive root beer color of the water which is created by the leaching of tannins from the cedar swamps that feed the river.

At its peak flow, the river drains as much as 50,000 gallons of water per second, making it the second most voluminous vertical waterfall east of the Mississippi River after only Niagara Falls.

View Courtney’s photo bigger and see more in her Landscapes slideshow.

Lots more Tahquamenon Falls on Michigan in Pictures!

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Don’t Fall On Me

Posted on by farlane

Don't. Fall. On. Me.

Don’t. Fall. On. Me., photo by DetroitDerek Photography

I think I have some days like this too.

Check it out bigger and see more in Derek’s massive Detroit slideshow. If you’re interested in purchasing this or another photo, email Derek.

For another perspective, try flying above the Penobscot Building in Google Earth!

Tis the Season

Posted on by farlane

Tis the Season

Untitled, photo by Jeff Caverly

Whatever you’re celebrating, I hope that you get the very best from this holiday season and that your life is filled with at least as much beauty & magic as is in this photo!

View Jeff’s photo background big and see more in his slideshow.

 

 

Winter Wonderland

Posted on by farlane

Winter Wonderland

Winter Wonderland, photo by Rodney Campbell

Rodney took this photo on Christmas Eve day last year at the Seven Ponds Nature Center in Dryden.

View it background bigtacular and see more in his Landscapes slideshow.

More winter wallpaper on Michigan in Pictures!

 

Biodiversity is not a dirty word

Posted on by farlane

Piping Plover

Untitled, photo by Anna Lysa

Sorry to mess up your holiday week with a bit of advocacy on the behalf of Michigan’s natural environment, but yesterday via Michigan Radio I learned of the very disturbing Senate Bill 78 that’s headed to Governor Snyder for signature or veto. The bill would forbid DNR from preserving biodiversity in forests and parks:

More than 130 scientists and the state’s environmental groups are calling on Gov. Rick Snyder to veto a bill they call anti-science. The bill would forbid the Michigan Department of Natural Resources from protecting native wildlife and plants on the pure merits of protecting nature.

  • The bill would prohibit the Department of Natural Resources from managing state lands for biodiversity.
  • It would prohibit the agency from managing forests for restoration.
  • It would end work to eliminate invasive species.
  • It would strike from the law the finding that most losses of biological diversity are the result of human activity.

Read on for more, and here’s the text of Senate Bill 78. If you’re so inclined, feel free to tell Gov. Rick Snyder what you think. I know that messages to our elected officials really do make a difference.

View Anna Lysa’s photo from July of 2012 at Ludington State Park bigger and see more in her Michigan slideshow.

PS: As I read it, piping plover would not be impacted by this as the species with just 8,000 adults is federally protected. I just picked them because they’re a recognizable species that has benefitted from extensive preservation efforts, some of them in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Michigan.

Here’s the piping plover and more of Michigan’s endangered plants and animals on Michigan in Pictures.

Frozen Hawthorn

Posted on by farlane

Christmas Hawthorne

Frozen Hawthorne, photo by Pete Hudeck

I was looking for photos of last December’s ice storm that paralyzed much of Michigan last year, but then I found this photo which seemed like a much better way to start a Monday! If you want to read about that, the Grand Rapids National Weather Service has a recap of the storm.

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

More ice on Michigan in Pictures!

Spires and the Solstice

Posted on by farlane

Spires

Spires, photo by Liz Glass

The Old Farmer’s Almanac shares that winter begins with the Winter Solstice at 6:03 PM EST tomorrow (Sunday, December 21):

Winter inspires both joy and woe. Some people can’t wait for the cooler weather, snow, skiing and ice skating, curling up by a fire, and the holiday spirit. Other people dislike the frigid temperatures, blizzards, and wild weather.

The word solstice comes from the Latin words for “sun” and “to stand still.” In the Northern Hemisphere, as summer advances to winter, the points on the horizon where the Sun rises and sets advance southward each day; the high point in the Sun’s daily path across the sky, which occurs at local noon, also moves southward each day. At the winter solstice, the Sun’s path has reached its southernmost position. The next day, the path will advance northward. However, a few days before and after the winter solstice, the change is so slight that the Sun’s path seems to stay the same, or stand still. The Sun is directly overhead at “high-noon” on Winter Solstice at the latitude called the Tropic of Capricorn. In the Northern Hemisphere, the solstice days are the days with the fewest hours of sunlight during the whole year.

Definitely check out Liz’s photo bigger and see more in her massive & cool Ice slideshow or (if you prefer) her Abstracts slideshow.