While most of the nation turns its eye towards Punxsutawney Phil, true Michiganders know there’s only one source for your winter woodchuck weathercast: Howell Nature Center’s own Woody the Woodchuck. Woody has been a fixture at the nature center since (at least) 2017 when I shared the photo from John Heinz Jr of lil Woody figuring out if something was or wasn’t food.
If you’re in the neighborhood, their free Groundhog Day Celebration is already underway, but you can also tune into their Facebook livestream that starts at 8:20 am!
“And now let us believe in a long year that is given to us, new, untouched, full of things that have never been, full of work that has never been done, full of tasks, claims, and demands; and let us see that we learn to take it without letting fall too much of what it has to bestow upon those who demand of it necessary, serious, and great things.” – Rainer Maria Rilke
This passage from a 1907 letter from the famed German poet Rilke to his wife Clara is often paraphrased, but even though it is kind of an awkward translation, I thought that it did a better job of conveying the enormity of possibility and urgency of making every moment and every person matter in your year to come. May 2026 bring you health, happiness, and good things that have never been.
Stephen took this photo of the Tobacco River on the Keweenaw Peninsula way back in 2013 and added his wishes for a fresh start and a Happy New Year to all. Check it out on his Flickr photo map and see more in his Geotouring gallery.
I’d like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas & happy holiday season that brings you and those you love as much magic & love as possible. The two photos below are from Fishtown Preservation, and I encourage you to support them in their work preserving this iconic Michigan location if you can!
I’ve been waiting to post this photo since the moment John shared it exactly one year ago today! Head on over to the Michigan Nut Facebook to give him a like, check out his calendars as possible gifts, and for sure check out the Northern Lights & Night Skies gallery on his website to view & purchase this and other fantastic photos!
I realize that I should add that although you can book tickets to ride the North Pole Express from Owosso, they sell out very early so I will try and shout this out earlier next year!!
The steam locomotive Pere Marquette 1225 was first used by the Pere Marquette Railway to transport products between Detroit, Toledo, Flint, Saginaw, Grand Rapids and Chicago for a decade before being retired in 1951 when the Railway merged with Chesapeake and Ohio Railway who favored diesel locomotives. It was then given to a reluctant Michigan State University where it sat for 25 years. Spartan Newsroom explains how Pere Marquette 1225 returned to service & became the inspiration for beloved children’s book The Polar Express:
The Pere Marquette 1225 sat untouched on MSU’s campus just south of Spartan Stadium until 1969, when a group of students took interest in the steam locomotive. Randy Paqueete, a Michigan State alum and then-member of the MSU Railroad Club, suggested that the group try to restore the engine instead of it just being on display.
The club’s first goal was to get the steam locomotive up and running to transport students to and from football games. “These students had some crazy ideas. We’re going to go to away football games. We’re going to go to Florida. We’re going to go to Aspen. We’re going to run charters,” Struck said. In 1975, after five years of work, the students were successful in firing up the boiler long enough to sound the whistle. This victory did not come easy, as they needed to put 245 pounds of steam pressure into a 400-ton boiler, which the university was nervous about.
“Ultimately, we got permission,” Paqueet recalled. “We jumped through a lot of hoops but we got licensed. We had to do it on a Sunday when there weren’t very many people on campus.”
The students started the fire for the boiler at 4 a.m., and by 8 a.m., the steam engine had enough pressure to sound the whistle. For the first time in two decades, the whistle of the Pere Marquette 1225 was heard, proving the restoration process on the locomotive to be a success.
The legacy of the Pere Marquette 1225 is not limited to MSU’s campus. Author Chris Van Allsburg, who wrote “The Polar Express” children’s book the animated movie was based on, was inspired by this same steam engine during his childhood. Growing up in Grand Rapids, Allsburg frequently visited MSU on the weekends for football games and would see the locomotive on display. When writing the book he remembered the steam engine he played on as a child, and the model number 1225, which also coincidentally represented Christmas Day. During production of the film, animators were given blueprints of the Pere Marquette 1225, allowing them to accurately recreate the train. They also made frequent visits to Owosso, Michigan, where the locomotive was eventually relocated, to record its authentic sound to use in the movie.
Here’s a few more shots by Charles of Pere Marquette 1225 from this year along with one of a photographer getting the shot that I shared back in 2018. For sure head over to Flickr to check out more in his Steam Engine, Railroad Photos gallery.
I’m thankful for the Lions being a solid football team, for the Pistons leading the Eastern Conference, for friends & family & the turkey I am about to cook and for all of you readers!! Thank you for keeping this interesting and I hope that whatever your plans are, that you take some time to give thanks to those in your life who make it better.
The Detroit Lions will face divisional foe Green Bay Packers in today’s 1pm Thanksgiving Day football matchup. It’s the anniversary of the first-ever NFL Thanksgiving Day game that featured the Detroit Lions and the undefeated Chicago Bears who won the game 19-16. It was also the first year of Detroit Lions football!
The Detroit Historical Museum shares that in 1934 the Portsmouth Spartans made the wise decision to leave Portsmouth, Ohio and rebrand as the Detroit Lions. The Lions have played every Thanksgiving Day since 1934 (except for 1939 to 1944 during World War II) due to the influence of the team’s first owner George Richards who also owned the WJR radio station & whose marketing savvy was a big part of the early success of the National Football League.
In other Lions news, the team made an agreement with Eminem to produce halftime shows. For his first act, Em has lined up Detroit-born Hall of Fame & Grammy winning rocker Jack White along with fellow Detroiter & gospel musician CeCe Winans who will sing the national anthem. And yesterday, they announced the unretirement of All-pro center Frank Ragnow!
Bridge Michigan reports that AAA Michigan is predicting that 2.3 million Michigan residents will drive at least 50 miles between Nov. 25 and Dec. 1, a 1.4% increase from last year that could be higher given continuing air travel delays. mLive shares that the roads could be quite a bit less than optimal with a powerful winter storm expected along with tumbling temps on Wednesday. Snow totals over 3 FEET are possible in the UP with as much as 1 to 2 inches per hour falling. The Lower Peninsula (see NWS Weather Story below) will have high winds as well & wet, heavy snow close to 2 feet in inland Northern Michigan with less as you move south and east. All in all, it looks like a good time to allow more time for your holiday travels!!
Joel has more photos of the parade including the frankly disturbing giant head parade corps in his Detroit Thanksgiving Parade 2014 gallery on Flickr. I also shot a video last year of many of the Big Head Marchers last year!
just don’t look into their eyes by Joel WilliamsBig Head Blessings by Joel Williams
The CPKC Holiday Train is set to roll through Michigan this Saturday November 22nd. My post about the train last week generated so many questions and so much interest that I decided to share some more info about this very cool Canadian project. Since its first journey in 1999, the CPKC Holiday Train has collected over 5 million pounds of food and raised more than $26 million dollars for community food banks in Canada and the US!
The estimated time that the train will pass by Michigan Central Station in downtown Detroit is 6pm, but it could be (and usually is) later. The train passes through southwest Detroit including Melvindale, Allen Park (est 6:30 – 7:30pm), Taylor, and Romulus before passing through Adrian (est 10pm – 2am) on its way out of Michigan near Munson. I’ll add updated information & answers to questions on this Facebook post about the Holiday Train.
Also, Detroit photographer Montez Miller reports that she has a friend in Windsor who is a police officer & will let her know when the train is leaving customs so you should probably follow her for that and also her amazing work as a photographer for the red hot Detroit Pistons!!
UPDATE: Montez adds that cpkcr.com will provide LIVE TRAIN TRACKING, but it won’t go live until the train starts to move. She also shared some good Metro Detroit locations where you can watch the Holiday Train!
CPKC railway, a few minutes from tunnel/bridge in Windsor
Railroad in Windsor
Southwest Greenway/Michigan Central Station
Delay/Southwest Detroit/111 Gates St
Thunderbowl Lanes, Allen Park (parking lot)
Airport (Romulus)
Wayne Rd/94
North Side of airport along 94
Social House Group – Belleville, MI same plaza as the Belleville Secretary of State office and Jet’s Pizza
Opening Day is Michigan’s largest unofficial holiday, generating a big chunk of the $2.3 billion dollars that hunting in Michigan brings in according to Pure Michigan. UpNorth Live shares that the 2025 Michigan deer hunting season starts tomorrow (Saturday, November 15) and runs through the 30th. They highlight the DNR’s Hunters Feeding Michigan program that lets hunters to donate deer to food pantries. Collection events happen November 21-23 and January 3-4. You can get all the info at the link!
Kevin took this 10 years ago. You can see his talent for wildlife photography in his excellent Animals gallery on Flickr.
The 2025 CPKC Holiday Train will tour Canada and the United States November 19 through December 21st raising money, food and awareness to support food banks across their rail network. Professional musicians play free concerts from the brightly decorated train’s stage, and CPKC donates to the local food bank at each stop and encourages all attendees to make a monetary or heart-healthy food donation! Since its inaugural journey in 1999, the CPKC Holiday Train has raised more than $26 million and collected approximately 5.4 million pounds of food for community food banks in Canada and the U.S.
Sean shares that he got these shots from near Detroit’s Michigan Central Station last year – click the pic above for more photos! He recommends it as a really good spot, especially if you can make it there before the crowds. You can see lots more if Sean’s work on his Facebook, where you can also subscribe for exclusive content including live videos.
Here’s hoping that everyone has a wonderful & safe Halloween … maybe not Jason tho ;)
Chris is a very creative photographer who took this at the the Voorhees grave marker in Belleville Cemetery way back in 2009. See more of his excellently spooky work in his Halloween Horror gallery on Flickr.
Michigan in Pictures 