Gladstone Michigan, photo by Sean Depuydt.
D300 and 30 seconds.
Sean appeared on Michigan in Pictures a while back with Zero Image Pinhole Camera: Bridge over Escanaba river.
Relighting the South Manitou Island Lighthouse
South Manitou Light, photo by dhoop.
Most nights I can see the red pulse of the North Manitou Shoal Light far out on the Manitou Passage (that stretch of Lake Michigan off the western shore of the Leelanau Peninsula).
Right now, a group of nonprofit & government organizations, businesses, historic engineers and private individuals are working to add another light to the passage. The effort is called “Relight the Light” and is funded in part by the National Park Centennial Initiative:
Lighting the South Manitou Island Lighthouse is a joint effort with three partners: Manitou Islands Memorial Society, Manitou Island Transit, and Electro-Optics Technology, Incorporated. The project will include purchasing and installing a replica third-order Fresnel lens, illuminating the lens with a low-wattage bulb using solar power as the energy source, and restoring the lantern room and stairwell.
As with many public projects these days, there’s a match component and organizers are seeking to raise funds to complete work currently underway on the lens by Artworks Florida.
For more information about the project and to view photos of the construction of the lens, visit South Manitou Island Lighthouse: Re-light the Light.
The South Manitou Island Lighthouse page from the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore has more about the light and its history and (as always) Terry Pepper’s Seeing the Light has a lot more. You can also see photos of the light and floorplans from the Library of Congress and here’s a South Manitou Island Light slideshow!
(lighthouse buffs might note a similarity between this tower and the tower of the Au Sable Point light)
Michigan Sunsets. Camp Rosenthal.
Michigan Sunsets. Camp Rosenthal., photo by vostok71.
Sergei says that he took this photo in 1995 (check it out bigger and also these other photos) when he was at Camp Rosenthal, operated by Chicago Youth Centers:
Located in Dowagiac, Michigan, Camp Rosenthal is one of only five remaining camps in the Midwest dedicated to the needs of low-income, at-risk children and offers a unique program designed to provide kids ages 8–15 with opportunities to become familiar with and appreciate the natural world and experience positive life-altering experiences…
At Camp Rosenthal, many children experience for the first time how spectacular a starry night is away from city lights, fall asleep and wake up where the only sounds come from nature, and learn to interact successfully with a diversity of new friends under the committed care and guidance of thoroughly trained youth workers.
I hope that we can work to foster similar experiences for kids in Michigan and elsewhere so nobody has to go through life without knowing what it’s like to sit on a dock and watch the day turn to night.
Ted at the Beach
McClellan School in Mason County
McClellan School.jpg, photo by smartee_martee.
This photo of the McClellan School in Mason County (near Custer, Michigan) is on of two photos (so far) in Marty’s Mason County set. The other one is a cool old photo of the Pere Marquette Station in Freesoil that I probably would have featured if I didn’t need to see some color so badly!
Summer is a good time to tune into Marty’s photostream as there are a lot of new photos of farms, old homesteads and other forgotten and abandoned structures popping in every week. buckshot.jones writes:
“It is what us folks in Michigan, at least us Detroiters call, “Going Up North.” Most people in MIchigan have a special affinity for the countryside in Northern Michigan. If you you’ve never been, well then you may never know. Here’s my solution. Take a tour of Smartee Martee’s photostream. Click on the sets and read the descriptions of the places he’s been. Then find a set you really like, mine is Osceola County, and watch the slide show. It isn’t quite the same as being there, but damn close. This is the heart and soul of rural Michigan captured on film.”
My own favorite is his massive Broken Souls set (slideshow).
Dredging Michigan’s Harbors
great lake – dredging, photo by j image.
Jim captured folks working at one of the many under-appreciated tasks in the world: dredging our harbors. As a lifelong resident of a coastal village, I anticipated the arrival of the dredging crew as a sign that summer was on the way. The US Army Corps of Engineers Detroit District explains why dredging is necessary on the Great Lakes:
Nearly all Federal harbors on the Great Lakes are located at the mouth of a river or along a coastline, utilizing natural or dredged navigation channels. Lake and river currents transport sand and silt eroded from the coastline and watershed. Some of this material may become deposited in navigation channels. Dredging is necessary to allow for safe commercial navigation and recreational boating. These natural processes would eventually lead to the filling of our harbors and waterways with rock, sand, mud, or clay. Harbors and major rivers, so vital to commercial, recreational and defense activities, would eventually fill in, leading to vessel delays and grounding. Today’s ore carriers, container ships, oil tankers and Coast Guard vessels need deep channels and docking facilities to move freely. Dredging is necessary to maintain Americas waterborne commerce and defense capability.
In addition, many recreational harbors need to be dredged regularly to remain open for small craft.
The page also explains something called “Beach Nourishment”, which I thought was a pretty unique term. Here’s a few dredging photos from the Absolute Michigan pool (slideshow)
Stormy June
Fine Threads BW, photo by sl33stak.
June 2008 has seen some of the most serious storms in many a year, producing power outages, widespread flooding and even some tornadoes.
I guess a silver lining is that folks like Jamie get to brush up on their lightning photography skills. He has several more storm pics and you can also check out this slideshow of thunderstorm photos from the Absolute Michigan pool.
Presque Isle River gorge
Presque Isle River gorge-1, photo by aragirn
This photo is part of his Porcupine Mountains State Park collection which includes photos of Manabezho Falls, Manido Falls, Nawadaha Falls, Overlooked Falls and Union River Gorge. You can order some of his photos (including this one) in the waterfall gallery on his web site.
The Michigan DNR says that at the Presque Isle River Scenic Site, the river traverses a series of low falls and cascades before dividing into two swifter and narrower channels that cut deeply into the underlying bedrock. Trails.com’s Presque Isle River entry says:
The Presque Isle is perhaps Michigan’s best-known whitewater river. Its river corridor is a beautiful one, carved out of some of the state’s wildest and most remote terrain. But it is the water itself that draws whitewater kayakers and canoeists from around the Midwest. As it rushes northward from its origins in rugged Michigan and Wisconsin forestlands to gush out into Lake Superior, the river packs extended runs of challenging whitewater together with thundering waterfalls to create an unforgettable paddling experience.
The Opossum Family Road Trip
close up, photo by gerrybuckel.
Well, the weekend is here and all around Michigan folks are packing their families into cars for a family getaway. This photo is dedicated to any who are tempted to lose their temper or otherwise complain about their lot.
Gerry has a few more photos of the possum family at her “animals” tag.
Have a great weekend people!
Michigan in Pictures 