This photo was provided by the Boyne City Morel Mushroom Festival. You can get a ton more information about the National Mushroom Festival and Michigan morel mushrooms today on Absolute Michigan.
Earth Day from high above Michigan
36,000 feet over Michigan, photo by bksecretphoto.
Landon Michaelson writes: One of my favorite shots out the airline window. I liked the clear day, the curvature of the earth, the black sky and the cloud layers beneath. Pocket digital several years ago (still easier to use than my DSLR in-flight) and of course I always request a window seat.
Landon is an East Wenatchee, WA based photographer whose work can be found by clicking the photo above or visiting Best Kept Secret Photography.
Last night I attended the Northern Michigan Environmental Action Council’s annual celebration of work on the behalf of the environment in our region. The even is timed as a lead-in to Earth Day and featured a ton of talking and pictures showcasing Michigan’s incredible natural bounty. Facts like “Michigan is the second most agriculturally diverse state in the country.”, the very funny and very compelling wombat video (highly recommended) and all the pictures showing land the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy has preserved for enjoyment and habitat or is helping to remain in farming and forestry forever.
The GTRLC’s Glen Chown delivered the keynote. One of his themes was that not only has the preservation and promotion of our natural and cultural heritage has proven to be good business in northwest lower Michigan, it also likely holds part of the answer to Michigan’s need for a new economic engine. Glen also related the observations of Michigan astronaut Jerry Linenger of Michigan from much higher window seat. Linengar has logged more hours in space than almost anyone and had ample time to marvel at the beauty of Michigan’s spectacular coastline, green forests and rich farms.
I imagine that he also felt how deep and cold the black is that lies just miles away from the only planet we have.
Have a very happy Earth Day, Michigan. I hope you get a chance to hike a Michigan trail, walk a Michigan beach and otherwise enjoy this magical place.
Zooming toward spring
Although it seems that the climate control has been set to “November” this morning, aricee’s photo says you can’t deny that spring is springing in Michigan.
If you click the photo above, you can zoom in on the wildflower and she has set it up so you can zoom in and out between this pair of photos.
A Challenge for Michigan
Dead River Fog, photo by bgreenlee.
Brad took this photo at Dead River Basin, north of his hometown of Ishpeming, Michigan.
I saw this photo several days ago and was struck by its richness. For me – maybe for anyone who has ever stood next to a glass calm and still Michigan lake on a late summer morning – this picture holds an armload of images. The way the shore floats in and out of focus in the slowly moving mist … the haunting call of a loon … the splash of fat trout. All of this and so much more.
Further to the north – too far to walk in a day but not all that far – are the Yellow Dog Plains, one of the fronts in a battle that if lost, would change this image of Michigan forever.
The Yellow Dog is not the only front though. Consider White River, where Michigan’s water is poured out to the rest of the world, never to return. Or all the inland lakes where exotic zebra mussels have poured in, sterilizing them of other life. And countless other places and ways that our rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, wells and wetlands face the pressure that comes where a resource is not valued.
This is probably the point where right around 50% of brains will want to shut off and wander off, thinking “Here comes another environmentalist rant.” While I am a huge fan of the environment (which I like to think of as my life support system) this isn’t about politics.
This is about money.
Tourism is Michigan’s second largest industry. Unlike extractive industries like acid mining or water bottling that send most of the revenue away from Michigan, tourism sends income rushing through our local economies, generating business profits (and tax revenues) along with many jobs in hotels, motels, B&Bs and cabins, restaurants, shops, outfitters, galleries, musicians and countless other industries. Economists talk about “the multiplier effect”, describing how one dollar pays for a room for the night, then morning coffee, afternoon canoe rental, evening dinner and fifty more things before it moves along.
That dollar has a future from the moment it is laid on the counter. The other dollar doesn’t.
This is not only about money though.
I have chosen to make my lifelong home in Michigan for the same very simple reason that I made this web site: I am hopelessly in love with the beauty of Michigan. From the towering face of the Pictured Rocks to the corn stalk stubbles in the next field, I am head over heels for Sweet Mama Michigan and I cannot bear to see her carved up and sold off.
Even in our hour of need, I hope we can all agree that it is precisely this beauty, this richness of water and wild that is among Michigan’s greatest treasures.
It’s in that hope (and also for pay) that I worked with others to make a challenge to all of you: Make a short video that tells why we should protect Michigan’s water.
We call it the Save the Wild UP Video Challenge and I invite you to learn more about it.
PS: Apologies to Brad for tacking all on this on to what could have been a simple post of a great photo.
PPS: Those of you who are Flickrites might want to check out the Save the Wild UP Challenge group.
PPPS: Apologies also for any over-preachyness. I promise to try and keep it to a minimum.
The Salmon Trout River on the Yellow Dog Plains
The Salmon Trout River on the Yellow Dog Plains, photo by savethewildup.
Somewhere there are lines, and I’m pretty sure that today I will cross a few. Over the life of this blog, I have stayed away from things that have sides, because sides too often divide us and this blog is really all about loving Michigan.
In my day job, I build web sites. A short while ago, I and some really talented people put together a new site for some people that have spent the last few years at a hard and lonely task: speaking up and standing up for Michigan’s rivers and lakes against the terrible risks posed by metallic sulfide mining and acid mine drainage. 
They have been focused on the Salmon Trout River on the Yellow Dog Plains, but that is just the first of many that will follow. To be very clear: There has never been a metallic sulfide mine that has failed to pollute its watershed. You can read more from Save the Wild UP … and scroll down for a special treat featuring tons more photos and music from Greg Brown’s upcoming CD, Yellow Dog.
More photos of the beauty of the Yellow Dog Plains and Salmon Trout River can be seen at Save the Wild UP’s web site.
If you are a photographer who loves Michigan’s water and wild, please consider making them available to be used in fighting metallic sulfide mining and other threats to Michigan’s legacy of unspoiled water and add them to the Save the Wild UP photo pool.
Au Sable River in Winter
Au Sable #040, photo by joelmaust.
One of several photos of one of Michigan’s premier trout rivers in winter.
Learn a little more on the Au Sable River from Wikipedia.
NOTE: Minor technical difficulties have delayed Bobby Alcott’s photographer profile – check back tomorrow!
The Chippewa River in winter
Chippewa River, photo by Lisa Yanick
If you click the photo above, blogger Eric Baerran of Among the Trees will take you down to the Chippewa River in Mt. Pleasant with a cool fusion of photographer Lisa Yanick’s great photos of the river with spoken words, sounds from the river and Bob Busch’s music.
Be sure to click the link for “the cleaner version” and also check out Eric’s two part feature on canoeing the river a couple years ago (part 1 and part 2).
Lake Superior, Presque Isle, Gales of November
photo by Shawn Malone, LakeSuperiorPhoto.com
About this photo, Shawn writes:
Storm was 40 knot NW gales creating 10-15 ft waves at Presque Isle Park in Marquette, MI. Water appears that color (glass green/blue) under those conditions due to gray sky, water depth among other things. It’s very brutal to stand out there and try to photograph with ice pellets hitting you in the face … water getting in your equipment from freezing spray, steadying a camera in those winds. After going to that spot many times in similar conditions, I couldn’t recreate that wave pattern if I tried 1000 times over. This is one of my most popular images, and I consider a gift from a higher power. Most recently, It was chosen for “Art on the Rocks” Fine art show poster 2006 and Lake Superior Magazine calendar 2006.
LakeSuperiorPhoto.com is absolutely packed with photos of Superior and the UP by Shawn & Brian Malone (bio page with cool magazine spread!). In addition to a lot more photos of waves and storms on Lake Superior, you can also find shots of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, events like the UP 200 Sled Dog Race, Northern Lights and an absolutely amazing number of pictures of towns, trails and all facets of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
Go there, you won’t be disappointed!
On the Wing
On the Wing, photo by Apocaplops.
Apocaplops writes A lone Bald Eagle flies over Huron National Forest, in northern Michigan. He adds that it is better viewed large and also has two more photos of this very big bird (click below). He also (also) has, by admission, too darn many cameras.
Michigan Christmas Wishes
Fishtown Christmas, photo by farlane.
I’m wishing for…
snow
blue skies
more snow
the time and wisdom to get out and play in all that snow
music
beauty
laughter
a bit more snow
and, if it’s not too terribly much trouble, peace on earth.
Hope the season, the year, your life or the fat guy in the red suit brings you what you’re wanting, needing and hoping for.
Michigan in Pictures 