Even though I’ve been on the internet for almost 3 decades, the odd synchronicities the combination of cookies, targeted ads, perceived interested, and dumb luck create never fail to delight me. The latest is this video about the process of preparing & smoking fish by an old family friend that came to me the day after I featured a photo from another business that sells smoked fish! (and I even have a THIRD for Monday)
I really encourage you to watch this video from John Mitchell’s Follow the Fishing channel on YouTube exploring the entire lake-to-table process of taking fish from Lake Michigan in Peshawbestown to Carlson’s Fishery in Leland and all the way to a plate at the Cove!
9 years ago I started a Michigan in Pictures Patreon page to allow folks to throw me a few bucks in support of michpics. A big thank you to all who have done so – it means a lot to know you care.
My best friend Ken who has since passed on & I took these photos way back in August of 2007 after an honestly incredible rock stacking event on the Lake Michigan shoreline just north of the village of Frankfort. I still have no idea who did this, but I know that I will never forget it!! I hope you enjoy these photos & the video and also that you’re able to make or discover magic in your corner of the Great Lakes State.
The 1868 peak in sail-powered ships on Lake Michigan also marked the year the 123-foot Rouse Simmons was launched from Milwaukee’s shipyards. The ship was built by the firm of Allan, McClelland, and Company, one of Milwaukee’s preeminent shipbuilding firms …In the early 1870s, the Rouse Simmons joined the sizeable shipping fleet of wealthy lumber magnate and philanthropist Charles H. Hackley of Muskegon, hauling loads of lumber for Hackley’s fleet from company mills to the various markets around the lake for roughly 20 years.
By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the popular German tradition of decorating an evergreen tree in the home was widely practiced, and it was not uncommon for a handful of lake schooners to make late-season runs from northern Michigan and Wisconsin loaded with thousands of Christmas trees for busy Chicago waterfront markets. Estimates of the number of Christmas schooners vary, but perhaps up to two dozen vessels in any season delivered evergreens to markets in Great Lakes states.
In Chicago, most vessels, including the Rouse Simmons, sold the trees directly from their berths along the Chicago River’s Clark Street docks. Electric lights were strung from the schooner’s bow to stern, and customers were invited to board the ship to choose their trees. In addition to selling Christmas trees, many boat operators, including Schuenemann, made and sold wreaths, garlands, and other holiday decorations. Barbara Schuenemann and her three daughters (Elsie is pictured above) helped make and sell these items as part of the family’s holiday trade.
You can read on for much more about Herman Schuenemann’s long career as “Captain Santa” which tragically came to an end on Friday, November 22, 1912 when the Rouse Simmons, heavily laden with 3,000–5,000 Christmas trees filling its hold & deck, left the dock at Thompson, Michigan looking “like a floating forest.” Sadly, the Rouse Simmons sailed into a powerful winter storm on the lake that sent her and several other ships including the South Shore, Three Sisters, and Two Brothers to the bottom of Lake Michigan.
On November 23, 1912, Back in 2007 Rich Evenhouse shared this video of a dive to the wreck of the Rouse Simmons. The shipwreck lies upright in 165 ft. at the bottom of Lake Michigan & I’ve heard that every year divers place a Christmas tree on the bow.
I featured this photo 8 years again, but with the incredible run of northern lights we’ve been having and the massive spike in interest in getting out under the night sky coupled with the rise of the Detroit Lions as an NFL superpower, it’s a great time to bring back this feature from Space.com on How to Watch the Leonids Meteor Shower:
The Leonid meteor shower will be active from Nov. 3 to Dec. 2 this year and will peak overnight from Nov. 17 to 18. The Leonids are produced when Earth passes through the debris left behind by comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle during its highly elliptical orbit around the sun every 33 years. The Leonids are considered some of the fastest meteors, zipping through the sky at 44 miles (71 kilometers) per second, according to NASA. They can also result in impressive fireballs producing long, bright and colorful meteor streaks.
The Leonids’ radiant is located in the sickle-shaped head of the constellation Leo, the lion. Leonid meteor hunting can be incredible, or a total bust. It all depends on where its parent body, Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, will be in its orbit and the kind of debris clumps that will be around when our planet passes through this comet’s orbit. The Leonids put on big shows in 1966, 1999 and 2001, according to AMS, when the comet was making its closest approach to the sun. It will be several years until observers get a big show from the Leonids.
Ross took this photo ten years ago in late September of 2014 and shared:
The sky was cloudy most of the night, but at 3:30am there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. We made our way to the lakeshore and sure enough the northern lights were dim on the northern horizon. At one point you could hear the howl of a distant wolf pack while the northern lights were out. Then moments later a slow move fireball flashed across the sky. It lasted a couple seconds and the brightness pulsed as it moved through the atmosphere. After that the aurora faded, but several more meteors (some very bright) streaked above us.
“Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours?”
It’s November 10th again, which means that for the 48th year straight year I have Gordon Lightfoot’s legendary ballad to the Witch of November on repeat. My absolute favorite version of the song (as many of you know probably all too wdell) is this version that Joseph Fulton created way back in 2009. Given YouTube’s ruthlessness on music copyright, I have to assume that Lightfoot blessed this because from the moment Harry Reasoner begins speaking, who wouldn’t?
You can join the 49th annual Great Lakes Memorial Service, a remembrance of the crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald in person at Mariners’ Church in downtown Detroit or on their YouTube livestream at 11am today. On November 11, 1975 they rang their church bell 29 times in honor of all the sailors that lost their lives due to the wreck of the S.S. Edmund FItzgerald. They do it every year, and the beloved service also commemorates all sailors who have lost their lives on the Great Lakes.
Here are a couple of photos I took recently of the beautiful stained glass and the historical marker at Mariners’ Church which is between Hart Plaza and the Renaissance Center on the riverfront in downtown Detroit. Lots more about the Edmund Fitzgerald on Michigan in Pictures!
Waugoshance Point is easy to spot on a map, just look for the large peninsula jutting out from the northwestern corner of the lower peninsula: that’s it. If only for that reason it was an attractive place to want to take a hike. An added bonus was the fact that it marks the western end of the Mackinac Straits amidst three remote lighthouses and is completely devoid of trails. I simply couldn’t come up with a reason NOT to go.
Waugoshance Point is truly spectacular in the summer when the rock beaches are home to a myriad of waterfowl and a dizzying array of lake shore wildflowers. I just couldn’t wait though. The snow was gone and I needed to get out. The trail head, if there was a trail, is located at the end of Waugoshance Point Road which gives access to the back-country cabins of Wilderness State Park. From there I’d trust my topo-map to guide me along the shore out to the point. Though there are no hills or cliffs to speak of the area turned out to be quite diverse and beautiful, as you’ll see…
Here’s a great aerial photo by Jim – see more in his From the Air gallery on Flickr which also includes another view of the Point from August of 2022.
Joe got these great shots on October 31st of the Mackinac Bridge and a freighter & shared them saying “Mackinaw City has a ghost ship for Halloween!” You can see more of his pics & those of others in the Mackinaw City, Michigan group that he manages on Facebook.
Every time I see this view of the Sleeping Bear shoreline, I think about what might have happened if Senator Phillip Hart & countless others hadn’t fought as hard and as long to protect this globally unique treasure. Almost anywhere else in Michigan or America with this mix of clear water & sandy shoreline is lined with the homes of the wealthy. Although the same trend was overtaking Sleeping Bear’s Lake Michigan shoreline, 54 years ago today preservation was victorious and the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore became the third US National Lakeshore:
Beginning in 1919 a small portion of what is now the national lakeshore was set aside as a state park. The idea of a national park in northwestern Michigan did not surface until the National Park Service’s Great Lakes Shoreline Survey visited the area in 1958. Between 1959 and 1970 there was a continuous and controversial effort in Congress to create a park unit around the Sleeping Bear Dune. The legislative leader of the Sleeping Bear park proposal was United States. The senator’s persistence and patience in the end led to the creation of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore on October 21, 1970.
There were hopes that Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan–ATLAS aka Comet A3 would be the comet of the century. While it is not quite that, it does appear that it will be visible for the next couple of weeks just after sunset, even to the naked eye! The good folks at EarthSky offer a helpful checklist to spot Comet A3:
Be sure you’re looking at the correct direction and time. Comet A3 will be visible low in the west after sunset beginning around October 14.
You need a dark, unobstructed sky. Start looking when the sky is dark, but close to sunrise or sunset. Make sure there aren’t hills, trees or buildings blocking your view.
If you can’t see the comet with your eye, try your phone. Most cell phone cameras provide a night or low-light mode. But capturing an image of the comet will require that you hold the camera firmly – or lean against a fixed object like a tree – to avoid shaky or blurred image.
AFTER you’ve located the comet, use binoculars or your eyes to sweep in that area in the sky.
Pure Michigan’s Fall Color Forecast for October 11 (see below) shows that the Upper Peninsula will be at or passing peak this weekend while most of the Lower Peninsula will be in the 20-60% range. Remember that leaf color can vary significantly even locally, and in addition to producing different colors when they turn, trees change at different times. Typical patterns have more color change the further you are from the Great Lakes. You can see this in the graphic below where much of the UP’s Lake Superior shore hasn’t hit peak yet.
Julie shares the story behind this gorgeous shot: Luckily I got up early this particular morning and the water was like glass! I was able to catch this awesome autumn reflection shot at Mirror Lake in the village of Fife Lake, Michigan. The nice mist coming off the water was definitely a bonus making it a truly serene and beautiful experience.
Michigan in Pictures 