A Public Service Announcement from Michigan Beaches

Posted on by Michigan in Pictures

Strolling in the sand.

Strolling in the sand., photo by photoshoparama.

We interrupt this wild winter weather for a special message from Michigan’s beaches who remind you that – despite all appearances to the contrary – winter is not forever and they will soon return with an all-new season of sun, sand and summer fun!

Thanks to Daniel (and Quentin) for the reminder from Grand Haven State Park in April of 2007. Be sure to click to the super-size for the full, glorious effect!

We now return to Winter, already in progress…

Winter Blues at the Ludington North Breakwater Light

Posted on by Michigan in Pictures

Winter Blues by Sumply Dianne

Winter Blues, photo by simply, Diann.

Diann writes What I’m really wondering is whether or not its a good idea to edit out the blue shadows that often show up in winter shots when the sun is behind the camera. She offers this shot for comparison and discussion. She also has a bunch more photos of Ludington’s lighthouse, many in the crashing seas that are referred to below! (and usually uploads her photos at desktop wallpaper size!)

Terry Pepper’s page on the Ludington North Breakwater Light has a really fascinating history of this lighthouse at the mouth of the Pere Marquette river. A lighthouse was established here in 1870 to aid in the navigation of the lumber ships that served the mills of Ludington and Pepper’s article details the trials endured by the keeper after Congress appropriated funds for the light but none for his dwelling (sound familiar?). Pepper goes on to detail the unique structure of the current North Pier Light:

Over the summer of 1924, a unique structure took shape at the end of the North Breakwater. The main tower, fabricated of steel plates over an internal steel skeleton, took the form of a four-sided pyramidal tower with four round porthole windows on each of the three decks within. With plans calling for the installation of an air diaphragm fog signal operated by an electrically powered compressor, there was no need for a large fog signal building, and thus the signal building took the form of a relatively small structure integrated into the base of the landward side of the main tower. In order to help protect the structure from the force of waves crashing across the breakwater, the concrete foundation at the base of the structure was formed with angled surfaces designed to deflect the force of wave action up and away from the building. The white painted tower was capped by a square gallery and an octagonal iron lantern installed at its center.

There’s great historical photos at the link above and if you’re a lighthouse buff, I can’t recommend Terry Pepper’s site enough. His pages on lighthouses of Michigan and the rest of the Great Lakes are the best there is.

Although Wikipedia’s entry on the Ludington Light is downright feeble, it does link to a nice set of videos of the Ludington lighthouse. There’s also this cool video of the lighthouse.

I’ve also added the Ludington Light to Absolute Michigan’s Map of Michigan.

Thru the Woods on an Aero Sleigh

Posted on by Michigan in Pictures

thru the woods

thru the woods, photo by litchard.

I’d never heard of the Wing Aero Sleigh – designed & built by Blain Wing in St. Ignace, Michigan in the 1940s – but Milton has a bunch of cool photos of the Aero Sleigh in action (slideshow)

There’s some information about how these were used from the Drummond Island Yacht Haven.

He uploaded the photos pretty large so be sure to click through check them out!

breakwater

Posted on by Michigan in Pictures

breakwater

breakwater, photo by Latitude 45.

Martin has three photos of the ice-shrouded Petoskey breakwater. There’s also one photo of how his dog remembers where he left the salmon, but the less said about that, the better.

Lone tree on a winter beach

Posted on by Michigan in Pictures

Lone tree on a winter beach

Lone tree on a winter beach, photo by norjam8.

This photo was taken and is part of Norm’s set of Winter photos, a very cool set that includes photos like this amazing shot of “Big Red” aka the Holland Harbor light.

Like pretty much all of Norm’s photos, this one is available in super-biggie wallpaper size. I think that’s a beautiful thing.

Lake Superior In January

Posted on by Michigan in Pictures

Lake Superior In January (2)

Lake Superior In January (2), photo by siskokid.

A rare moment of calm on the Greatest of Lakes.

There’s also Lake Superior In January (1). Both are nicely “wallpaper sized” and in his Lake Superior and Winter sets.

Explore Michigan … and Lake St. Clair ice piles

Posted on by Michigan in Pictures

1

1, photo by Dane Van.

This photo is from the Explore Michigan group on Flickr that seeks to promote Michigan photographers and the people that travel Michigan in search of its beauty. They are planning events that will take members all over Michigan, so maybe drop by and check them out.

This photo is from Dane’s Random Detroit set (slideshow). It made me wonder what it is about Lake St. Clair that encourages this sort of ice pileup. Current? Prevailing east winds? The Lake St. Clair Monster? Then I realized that a a photo of a similar jam on Lake St. Clair from Michigan in Pictures last year had the answer.

More photos of Lake St. Clair on Michigan in Pictures.

Fantasy in Blue & Aluminum

Posted on by Michigan in Pictures

[PHOTO GONE]

Sorry. This was a photo that Lexie took this photo of Mazda’s Taiki Concept at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show aka the North American International Auto Show aka The Place Where Car Designers Get To Go Crazy. She had a few more too but they’re now gone because she quit Flickr.

I thought it was probably the quintessential concept car because is made me ask that all important question: Are we ever going to be driving cars that look like this? while simultaneously thinking It would be pretty darned cool if we did!.

Kicking Tires at cars.com took a look at a few 2008 Detroit Auto Show concept car winners and losers and you can read more about the Taiki at Jalopnik.

Another (Michigan) Roadside Attraction

Posted on by Michigan in Pictures

Paul Bunyan

Paul Bunyan, photo by I am Jacques Strappe.

The Michigan Historical Museum is planning an exhibit called Michigan’s Roadside Attractions, set to run from January to June of 2009. They are looking for stories, pictures and artifacts of the unique places – open or long shuttered – that folks visit on the way from someplace to someplace else. Michigan Historical Museum System Director Phillip C. Kwiatkowski says:

We want to hear what made you stop at these roadside attractions – places like the Mystery Spot in St. Ignace, Deer Forest in Coloma, Windmill Island in Holland and the multiple locations where Paul Bunyan has been spotted – and to see the photos you took and the souvenirs that you kept. Our biggest need is your treasured mementoes, from miniature Paul Bunyan statues and plastic purses to dinosaurs, seashells and even ceramic doll dish sets.

If you can help, please contact Eve Weipert, curator of collections, at (517) 373-1509 or weiperte@michigan.gov. Most artifacts used in the exhibit will be considered on loan and will be returned after the exhibit ends. The museum has an established review process that is utilized prior to acceptance of loans or permanent donations. Artifacts are needed by April 1, 2008 to allow time to complete the exhibit storyline around the available artifacts.

This photo by Marjorie is part of her Roadside Curiosities set (slideshow) and it’s available “Bunyan-sized” for your desktop wallpaper.

If you’re interested in Michigan’s roadside attractions, here’s some “roadside” photos from the Absolute Michigan pool, Michigan Tourist Traps from WaterWinterWonderland.com, the “roadside” tag on Michigan in Pictures, this Absolute Michigan “Weird Wednesday” featuring Domke’s Dinosaur Gardens and of course, Michigan’s legendary Big Boy Graveyard.

If you have links or memories to share, post them in the comments!

Go Speed Racer … to the 2008 Detroit Auto Show

Posted on by Michigan in Pictures

Speed Racer by burnlab

There’s all kinds of celebrity guests at the 2008 North American International Auto Show, including the Mach 5 race car from the forthcoming Speed Racer movie (May 2008). The movie is by Larry and Andy Wachowski (The Matrix) and I have to say that the trailer looks frighteningly fun.

This photo is part of a big set of photos from the 2008 Detroit Auto Show that includes a lot of juicy detail shots concept designs and some interesting vehicles like the Li Shi Guang Ming.

If you want to see the car, go to the NAIAS this weekend. Here’s a bunch of stuff on the 2008 Detroit Auto Show from Absolute Michigan.

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