Saginaw at Mission Point, photo by Krystal Kauffman
Capistrano has their swallows, but a sure sign of Spring in Michigan is when the freighters return to the Great Lakes. One of the best places for shipwatching is right where Krystal took this photo: Mission Point at the mouth of the North Channel near the Soo Locks.
View the photo bigger and follow My Michigan by Krystal on Facebook for more.
2013 Mackinac Bridge Walk & Run, photo by Michigan Fitness Foundation
The Detroit Free Press reports that the Mackinac Bridge Authority voted unanimously yesterday to close the bridge to all traffic during the annual Labor Day bridge walk this year:
The bridge will be closed from 6:30 a.m. to noon to all traffic, leaving an estimated 4,000 drivers stranded on either side of the bridge on one of the busiest traffic days of the year.
The action was taken at the request of the Michigan State Police and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which are responding to threats posed by terrorists using vehicles to plow into crowds to inflict the most possible damage.
…Between 30,000 and 60,000 people participate in the annual 5-mile walk across the Mackinac Bridge that connects the state’s Upper and Lower Peninsula. Typically, the northbound lanes remain open during the bridge walk and an estimated 9,000 vehicles use the bridge during that time, Baker said.
Read on for more.
View the photo background big and see more in their massive 2013 Mackinac Bridge Run slideshow.
Tons more about the Mackinac Bridge on Michigan in Pictures.
Apparently turtles have no concept of “my personal space”, photo by Dale Devries
Regular readers are aware that World Turtle Day is a big favorite of mine. It takes place a week from today on Tuesday, May 23rd, and I’m extra excited for this year as I will post the 10th and final turtle on my list of the ten turtles native to Michigan! Be sure to tune in and definitely consider supporting American Tortoise Rescue and their World Turtle Day!
I tried to find a definitive answer as to why turtles “stack” like this. It appears to be a way for littler turtles to get more sun, but I’m curious if anyone has a definitive answer.
About the photo Dale writes:
I took an old section of dock and made a ramp up to it just above the waterline, and the turtles have voiced their approval! I have no idea why we have so many turtles here, but it must mean the lake is healthy!
View the photo background big and see more in Dale’s The Best of West Lake slideshow.
The not so elusive Sourdough loaves, photo by Dan Bruell
Hey folks, let me tell you about a cool thing that I’m involved with, the second annual Crosshatch Skill Swap at Earthwork Farm on Saturday, June 3rd. It’s a full day of hands-on workshops, followed by a dinner and live music. It takes place at Earthwork Farm near Lake City and offers 16 workshops in four areas:
After the dinner, there are FOUR musical treats. The first is a waltz hour featuring amazing string players with knowledgeable waltzers to help you learn a bonus skill – waltzing followed by a concert in the barn host Seth Bernard, Gifts or Creatures, and Heavy Color. Camping is included if you so desire, and there’s a video below with my friend Brad outlining the day. Click for tickets and more information!
View the photo background big and see more in Dan’s Foods slideshow.
Happy Mother’s Day, photo by Jim Sisko
Happy Mother’s Day to all you Michigan moms! I appreciate how hard you work every day doing the toughest job that I know of. Here’s hoping that everyone takes some time this weekend for the mothers in their lives.
Jim shared this several years ago and wrote:
This is my wife Margie (AKA Mom to our daughter and Grandma to our two granddaughters) looking out at Lake Superior from the beach of her favorite place in the world, Little Girl’s Point. Margie is the best person I have ever known, and i’m eternally grateful that she chose me to spend her life with. My Mother has been gone almost 25 years now and I still think about her every day, but especially on this day.
View the photo bigger and see more in Jim’s Random 19 slideshow.
Blue Skies, Blossoms & Bokeh, photo by Andrew McFarlane
Cherry blossoms, along with apple & other fruit tree blooms are out across Michigan. If you’re near a fruit growing region, take a drive and see what’s to be seen!
I definitely miss my Olympus dSLR. View the photo background bigilicious and see more in my Cherry Blossoms slideshow.
PS: Here’s a little Facebook Live video I did this week with Nikki Rothwell, head of MSU’s Northwest Michigan Horticultural Research Station about cherries, blossoms, and the work of the Station. I can’t seem to size the video here so you might want to click to view it on the Leelanau.com Facebook.
Kevin reading the sign, photo by Penny Thompson
OK. I know I’m REALLY heavy on birds lately, but come how can you resist??!!
A reader (Bill S) tipped me off that there was a story out there on Kevin so I have an addition:
A Michigan gas station where a rooster showed up a few months ago and refused to leave built a coop for the bird and named him Kevin. Michelle Brink, a 15-year employee of Magoo’s gas station in Paw Paw, Michigan, said the rooster first turned up on October of last year, and started making regular visits to eat the deer feed outside the store.
“After the deer feed left we thought maybe he would go home [but] he never left,” Brink told WXMI-TV. “So we’re like OK, winter’s coming, we better build him a box.”
Read on for more including a great video report featuring Kevin from UPI.
View the photo bigger and see more in Penny’s slideshow.
More funny business on Michigan in Pictures.
Stillwater, photo by Jamey Robertson
One of the things I love about spring in Michigan – even in a very windy spring like 2017 – are those days when the water is smooth as glass.
View the photo of the soon to be filled Northport Marina bigger and follow Jamey on Instagram for more.
Lift Off!, photo by David Marvin
Here’s hoping your week gets off to a great start! You can read all about the red-tailed hawk, Michigan’s most common hawk, and see more photos and hear calls in the Red-tailed Hawk entry from All About Birds.
View the photo background bigtacular and see more in David’s Birds slideshow.
Temple Beth El, Study #01, photo by Brian Day
Temple Beth El was established in 1850 as the first Jewish congregation in the state of Michigan. Their history page notes that there were just 60 Jews out of a population of 21,000 at that time.
The Michigan Notable Book Michigan Modern’s page on Temple Beth El says in part:
Temple Beth El is located in Bloomfield Township, Michigan, on a low rise adjacent to Telegraph Road, a wide and heavily traveled thoroughfare. Mature spruce and pine trees are present around the base of the structure to shield the worshippers from outside distractions. The unmistakable design of the sanctuary incorporates a tent-like form to recall the “Tent of Meeting” referenced in the Bible and the earliest places of worship used by the Jewish people. The cast-in-place concrete structure consists of two pairs of closely placed sloped columns, or tent poles, supporting curved ridge beams at the top of the structure and tied together by elliptical ring beams at the structure’s base. Below the ring beam is a transparent curtain wall of clear glazing that gives the illusion, from the exterior and interior that the tent-form roof is hovering above the open sanctuary space. Between the ridge beams is a transparent skylight that provides natural light into the sanctuary and further emphasizes the “lightness” of the structure. Catenary steel cables suspended between the ridge and ring beams support the gentle curve of the lead-coated copper roof which soars some seventy feet above grade.
The administrative offices, social halls and religious school are located in a one-story wing that extends north from the main entrance to the sanctuary on the building’s west elevation. The Temple Beth El comprises approximately 112,500 square feet, and can accommodate up to eighteen hundred worshippers.
Read on for more!
View the photo bigger on Facebook where there are other photos in his Metro Detroit Modern Architecture Study and see more of Brian’s photography at brianday.org.
Michigan in Pictures 