The newly formed Irish Hills Historical Society has launched a campaign to restore and reopen the Irish Hills towers and to open an Irish Hills museum. You can learn more at that link and read about the history of the Irish Hills towers on Michigan in Pictures.
See this photo bigger and in Bethany’s Irish Hills slideshow.
Tannery Falls, photo by trumansnare.
GoWaterfalling.com says that Tannery Falls:
…is not as well advertised as the larger Munising Falls, but as a result it is somewhat wilder and less visited. Like other waterfalls in the area, it suffers from a lack of water in the summer.
Click through for information on finding this out-of-the-way gem.
Check the photo out on black and see more including Tahquamenon Falls and the Pictured Rocks in Nick’s Upper Peninsula Michigan slideshow.
Brook Trout by Michigan DNR
Michigan’s state fish is the Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis). The Michigan DNR says:
Brook trout have a long, streamlined body with a large mouth that extends past the eye. Color variations include olive, blue-gray, or black above with a silvery white belly and wormlike markings (vermiculations) along the back. They have red spots sometimes surrounded by bluish halos on their sides. The lower fins have a white front edge with black and the remainder being reddish orange. The tail fin is square or rarely slightly forked. During breeding time in the fall male brook trout can become very bright orange-red along the sides.
The brook trout is native to Michigan’s waters and is the state fish of Michigan. They can be found throughout most of the state in many creeks, streams, rivers, lakes, and in the Great Lakes. Brook trout require cool, clear, spring-fed streams and pools. They can be found under cover of rocks, logs, and undercut banks and have been described as stationary. Larger brook trout often inhabit deep pools moving to shallow water only to feed. They prefer temperatures from 57–60 degrees F.
…Brook trout have been described as voracious feeders with the potential to consume large numbers of zooplankton, crustaceans, worms, fish, terrestrial insects, and aquatic insects. Ephemeroptera, Trichoptera, and Diptera often make up a large component of their diet. However, they will often feed on whatever is most readily available. Brook trout are avidly sought after by sport anglers, for food as well as for the sport. They can be caught by using various bait and lures including worms, crickets, grasshoppers, wet and dry flies, spoons, and spinners.
Trout Unlimited’s Brook Trout Atlas adds: Brook trout are the only trout native to much of the eastern United States and serve as indicators of the health of the watersheds they inhabit. Strong wild brook trout populations demonstrate that stream or river ecosystem is healthy and that water quality is excellent. A decline in brook trout populations can serve as an early warning that the health of an entire aquatic system is at risk.
Choose your own adventure with more Michigan state symbols and more fish & fishing on Michigan in Pictures.
Watching the Water, photo by derekspacelewis.
I can have 2 photos of the most beautiful place in America in a week, right?
Check it out background big and in Derek’s Sleeping Bear Dunes slideshow.
Greeny Goodness, photo by sgs_1019.
The sun, with all those plants revolving around it and dependent upon it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as if it had nothing else in the universe to do.
~Galileo Galilei
The sun is working away on the 2011 vintage in Michigan’s vineyards, and today I’m working away on the lawn of the Grand Traverse Commons in Traverse City on the 3rd annual Traverse City Wine & Art Festival. It’s a celebration of the culture & cuisine of northwest Michigan that brings together 24 wineries from Leelanau, Old Mission, Traverse City & Benzie with over 100 wines from 2010 and other years along with a slew of artists with work for show and sale, great food & music and some incredible performance art!
If you’re in the neighborhood, please come by as I think it’s going to be amazing! If not, definitely pick up a bottle of Michigan wine – you will be happy to learn what the sun has been up to! If you’re looking for some suggestions, check out the medal winners from the 2011 Michigan Wine Competition!
Check this out bigger and in Sarah’s slideshow.
Awesome Aerials, photo by StacyN – MichiganMoments
The Holiday Balloon Fest in Battle Creek takes place August 22-27. This year’s Holiday Balloon Fest is also the site of the 2011 US National Hot Air Balloon Championships! Holiday Balloon Fest began in 1998 at Kellogg’s Cereal City USA in Battle Creek and has grown from just 13 pilots that first year to over 70 balloonists, drawing over 25,000 people to enjoy this graceful spectacle.
You can check them out on Facebook and see more in their photo gallery and a few video slideshows as well.
See this photo bigger and in Stacy’s Hot Air Balloon slideshow!
Please Just Come, photo by Happyhiker4
On Leelanau.com yesterday, I reported that the Sleeping Bear Dunes have been named the most beautiful place in America by the viewers of Good Morning America.
Today I’ve been reading here and there of folks who are wondering if in fact the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore deserves that distinction. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so here’s 1600+ pictures of the Sleeping Bear Dunes from the Absolute Michigan pool on Flickr. Even better, here’s the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore homepage – take a trip and decide for yourself!
One of my favorite photographers who shoots in the dunes is Mark Lindsay. See this photo bigger and also in his Dunes slideshow.
The taste of summer.., photo by Blondieyooper.
Our feature on blackberries on Absolute Michigan has some blackberry facts courtesy Taste the Local Difference says:
Blackberries are very high in Vitamin C and K and manganese and a good source of Vitamin E, folate, magnesium, potassium, and copper. They have one of the highest levels of the antioxidant antocyanin, which may help fight cancer, aging, and improve vision. Some fun facts:
- Blackberries are also known as “black caps”
- Blackberry tea was considered a cure for dysentery during the Civil War
- The blackberry leaf was used as a hair dye
- Blackberries are one of the easiest fruits to grow
Get more including some tasty blackberry recipes like Blackberry and Peach Buttermilk Cobbler! The article also features another photo by April, who I’m guessing really likes blackberries! She shot these wild Michigan blackberries late last August in the U.P. – check this one out background bigilicious and see more in her Nature (Upper Michigan) slideshow!
Pride and Joy, photo by country_boy_shane.
The annual Woodward Dream Cruise is the is the world’s largest one-day automotive event, drawing 1.5 million people and 40,000 classic cars. It takes place this Saturday (August 20, 2011) and has come a long way since August 1995, Nelson House and a group of volunteers looked to relive and recreate the cruisin’ heydays of the 50s and 60s.
The one day cruise is paired with the Ferndale Woodward Dream Cruise which happens August 18-20 and has many special exhibitions and musical performances.
More about the Woodward Dream Cruise on Michigan in Pictures.
Check this out background big and in Shane’s Woodward Dream Cruise 2008 slideshow. You can also get your own copy from Shane Gorski Photography!
Want more? Have a look at the Woodward Dream Cruise Group on Flickr!
Fishing, photo by kevindooley.
On this photo Kevin writes:
I think one of our best indicators of the planet’s health is the price of a fish sandwich. Notice how much the price has gone up in last 5 years? It’s because we’re depleting our fisheries.
Seems to me an Earth without fish is not a good sign.
Here in the Great Lakes we are waging a desperate battle against invasive species including Asian Carp and zebra & quagga mussels. Today on Absolute Michigan I featured a sobering article about how we are losing the battle to control sea lamprey, a longtime invasive that we once had under control due to funding cuts that are projected to get even worse in the years to come. Click through to check it out and to go up close with the US Fish & Wildlife Service’s lamprey control efforts via Michigan Radio and also Mike Rowe of Dirty Jobs.
View this big as the Great Lakes and in Kevin’s Lake Michigan Sunsets slideshow.
Michigan in Pictures 