View from West Bluff of The Grand Hotel, photo by MI photographer
126 years ago today on July 10, 1887, The Grand Hotel opened for business on Mackinac Island. In honor of Michigan’s most famous hotel, here’s a seldom seen view.
Check it out bigger and see more in MI photographer’s Mackinac Island slideshow.
PS: The lighthouse you can see in the distance is Round Island Lighthouse – click the link to get closer with Michigan in Pictures.
“Bridge to Nowhere” Foggy Mackinac Bridge – Mackinaw City , Michigan, photo by Michigan Nut
“Unless we move without delay to halt the deterioration of our land, our water and our air, our own children may see the last traces of earth’s beauty crushed beneath the weight of man’s waste and ruin.”
~Governor William Milliken to the Michigan legislature, January 1970
While “environmentalism” has become a polarizing term, it seems to me to be a concept that’s at the core of loving & caring for the Great Lakes State. One of my personal heros, Michigan Governor Bill Milliken, recognized this and he and his wife Helen fought strongly throughout their careers to enshrine protection of the natural bounty that they loved into the fabric of Michigan’s laws. It’s no surprise that every year the Michigan Environmental Council recognizes an individual for outstanding leadership, enduring commitment and extraordinary public service in protecting natural resources at the local, state and national levels with the Helen & William Milliken Distinguished Service Award.
The 2013 recipient has been announced, Dave Dempsey. Dempsey is the author of numerous books, a former member of the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, environmental policy adviser to former Michigan Gov. James Blanchard, and member of the state’s Natural Resources Trust Fund Board.
“Dave Dempsey is the rare leader who is able to move effortlessly from talking about the arcane technical details of some issue, to explaining in vivid and powerful terms why that issue is so critical to the quality of life for the generations that come after us,” Chris Kolb, MEC president, said in a press release Monday.
“Dave’s contributions to a better Michigan through his public policy advocacy alone deserve our recognition and gratitude. However, when you add in his authoritative chronicling of Michigan’s environmental history through his books, it’s clear he has made a special, positive, and lasting impact on our state.”
There’s no doubt that Dempsey has been a champion of the Great Lakes, and this Sunday (July 14) you have a chance to do some championing of your own as dedicated groups from all over the state host Oil & Water Don’t Mix: A Rally for the Great Lakes to raise awareness about climate change and the dangers posed by an oil pipeline that runs through the Mackinac Straits. Enbridge Energy – the company responsible for the devastating July 2010 Kalamazoo River oil spill and over 800 other spills since 1999 – has been pumping oil through the Straits for 60 years. They are seeking to pump even more oil through the aging Mackinac pipeline – possibly including tar sands, the most toxic and hard to clean up if spilled.
The rally this Sunday, July 14 at noon at Bridge View Park in St. Ignace (just across the bridge) and there are numerous busses heading there from Kalamazoo, Lansing, Traverse City and other locations. Click for details or view the event on Facebook!
Check John’s photo out bigger and see more in his Bridges / Covered Bridges slideshow.
Jiqing Fan thinks that the dragon that hatches from this would be a match for Daenerys Stormborn’s… Check it out bigger and see more (including another view) in his Houghton / UP Michigan slideshow.
Turnip Rock Sunrise by David Frey
You may recognize this photographer from his photo of Chapel Rock last month. Turnip Rock has been featured a few times on Michigan in Pictures, but this is definitely the most dramatic photo of it! He writes:
Taking these pictures of “Turnip Rock”, located near Port Austin at the tip of Michigan’s thumb region, was a bit of an adventure. I had seen day time pictures of it before, but thought that it would look its best at sunrise. I decided to make a project of it during the 4th of July weekend. I traveled to Port Austin and in talking to folks there confirmed what I had already read – since it is located just offshore a large private property the only way to visit it is by kayak (about 7 miles round trip). I hesitated a bit since it was my first time in the area and I have not kayaked in decades. Also, in order be there by sunrise meant I would have to paddle out there in the pre-dawn darkness. Having a chance to see it at sunrise turned out to be too tempting, so after finding a hotel room 20 miles away in Bad Axe (closest one available because of the holiday), I put my alarm clock on for 3:45am.
I was on the water by about 4:30am and arrived at Turnip Rock just before the sky started to light up. I have had several outings before where the weather didn’t cooperate, but this time I was lucky and despite the clouds there were some nice colors in the sky. I am pleased with the pictures, but the experience of kayaking out on Lake Huron in the early morning hours is something I will always remember. Look forward to other outings like this, which is one of the reasons I have enjoyed taking up photography again.
Indeed! Your camera is like a dog – it will make you get outside and see cool things! Check this out background bigtacular and see a couple more shots from his kayaking adventure in his slideshow.
Beaches? Sunrises? Lake Huron? Summer wallpaper? Tons more on Michigan in Pictures. Enjoy your holiday weekend!
Yipsilanti Michigan, photo by vtnn43e48073
It may not be Nighthawks, but I thought this diner looked pretty cool!
Check it out background big or in Zack’s slideshow.
Boulder Splash – Seul Choix Point (Gulliver, MI), photo by Aaron C. Jors
Wikipedia’s entry for Seul Choix Light begins:
This location is the only harbor of refuge in a long and dangerous stretch of coast; the translation of the French name is “only choice” so it is clear that it was used as a refuge by the early French traders in this area. Local references state that the correct pronunciation is “Sis-shwa”, assumed to be the common name used by both the French Voyageurs and the Native Americans with whom they traded furs.
In the 1880s, there was increased maritime traffic between the harbors on Lake Michigan’s western shore and Green Bay on the one hand, and the Straits of Mackinac on the other. Although the St. Helena Island Light marked the western entry into the Straits, and Poverty Island Light lighted the entrance to the Bays de Noc, there were no lighthouses to aid mariners navigating a dark 100-mile (160 km) stretch of coastline on the southern shore of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The navigation season along this shoreline often began and ended with treacherous storms. Waves would build as they traversed the lake, making shelter a matter of life and death. Thus, mariners would seek shelter on the leeward side of points protruding into the lake along this stretch of unlighted shore.
You can read on for more and also check out The Haunting of Seul Choix Point Lighthouse on Michigan in Pictures for more about this lonely locale.
Check out Aaron’s photo bigger and see more in his Michigan slideshow.
Cornfields of Armada, photo by scottie_williford
Although today’s corn is generally well past knee high by the 4th of July, our cold spring has the saying ringing true.
View Scottie’s photo bigger and see more in his slideshow.
cruising into the sunset, photo by suesue2
Michigan in Pictures will be taking a break this week – see you again on July 1st!
Sue caught the last ferry of the night as it headed to Mackinac Island. Check it out bigger and see more in her Up North slideshow.
Splash-in 2013, photo by Gary of the North(Footsore Fotography
Check Gary’s photo out big as the sky and see more in his Grand Marais Michigan slideshow.
Enjoy your weekend everyone!
Pond Boss, photo by MichaelinA2
I grew up by a marsh that was filled with Red-winged Blackbirds, and their song has always felt like lazy summer days to me. All About Birds entry for Red-winged Blackbird Agelaius phoeniceus says:
One of the most abundant birds across North America, and one of the most boldly colored, the Red-winged Blackbird is a familiar sight atop cattails, along soggy roadsides, and on telephone wires. Glossy-black males have scarlet-and-yellow shoulder patches they can puff up or hide depending on how confident they feel. Females are a subdued, streaky brown, almost like a large, dark sparrow. In the North, their early arrival and tumbling song are happy indications of the return of spring.
Male Red-winged Blackbirds do everything they can to get noticed, sitting on high perches and belting out their conk-la-ree! song all day long. Females stay lower, skulking through vegetation for food and quietly weaving together their remarkable nests.
Read on for more including video and blackbird calls. The Red-winged blackbird entry on Wikipedia has more, including a photo of the aforementioned red wing blackbird nest which I have to admit looks very cool!
Check this out bigger and see more in Michael’s 2013 birds slideshow.
More birds on Michigan in Pictures!
Michigan in Pictures 
