Wreath, photo by rckrawczykjr.
I suspect that it doesn’t matter as much what we celebrate as how.
May your time be spent with those you love in happiness, health and bounty.
Where the Buffalo Roam
Where the Buffalo Roam, photo by DaddyNewt.
DaddyNewt says that this buffalo roams at the Detroit Zoo
When I saw it, I asked him if it had been extensively photoshopped. He replied:
I don’t have photoshop but I did manipulate it digitally, then I printed it on regular copy paper. Then I stained it , spattered it, crumpled it, broiled it, smeared it with dirt, ironed it and then scanned it back in and manipulated it some more. Sometimes I get kind of obsessed.
He’s uploaded it huge size and yes, it makes a ridiculously cool computer background!
alone in the snow
alone in the snow, photo by basha04.
Hope you’re not alone in the snow on this snowy Michigan morning.
Basha put this in her pictures I love set (slideshow) and she has more wintery goodness right here!
Ski Jump
Jonathan writes that the title of this photo is better understood if you know that Paul is also known as Ski. It was taken at the Sleeping Bear Dunes and yes, it makes awesome wallpaper!
I will add that this post is better understood if you understand that I spent an hour working on a post about skiing that’s gonna take two hours – happy weekend everyone!
The Sun will rise.
The Sun will rise., photo by Hooks Pix.
About this photo of an October sunrise in Northern Michigan Hooks Pix writes:
A fall shot that I just got around to, I have been scanning negatives for a while now. Thought this was nice, added a ND filter, that’s it. Best seen large.
Well, here’s the large view and (in case you were wondering) here’s information about Neutral Density filters (aka ND filters).
Fist of a Champion – Detroit’s Monument to Joe Louis
Joe Louis 2, photo by buckshot.jones.
Scott writes I simply love this piece of art work. It says so much about the heart and soul, the toughness, about the town and the people who live here and have built this area. Joe Louis Barrow, aka “The Brown Bomber” is one of the all-time great boxers. The 24 x 24 x 11.5 feet Monument to Joe Louis was commissioned by Time Inc. for the City of Detroit to honor Joe Louis. It was created by sculptor Robert Graham and installed at Jefferson Avenue at Woodward, Detroit on October 16, 1986.
Robert Graham’s page on the Joe Louis Memorial says:
The monument is a 24-foot long arm and fist held in balanced suspension from a pyramidal support of bronze poles. Weighing approximately 8,000 lb., it rises 24 feet above a major downtown intersection.
The initial arm was modeled in clay at 14 inches in length. With the aid of a computer, a full-scale steel armature, 24 feet in length, was made and wrapped with wire and covered with clay. The final clay model was divided into eight sections and cast in bronze, then assembled. The pyramid structure was fabricated out of steel, and faced with bronze plates. A tribute to Joe Louis is inscribed on the arm.
Detroit Yes writes in Downtown Montage that he may be the only person in Detroit (other than Scott) who likes the Fist:
So great was Joe Louis that is difficult to measure the historical contribution of this immense figure who, without a close second, is by far the greatest sports figure to ever arise from Detroit and assume center stage on the world theater. It was he who helped shatter the Nazi myth of racial superiority with his dramatic defeat of German champion Max Schmeling during the rise of Nazism. In doing so and then serving his country nobly in the segregated army of World War II, he laid bare the disgraceful hypocrisy that denied Afro American athletes access to the major leagues of American sport, not to mention all Afro Americans who were and are denied the basic birthrights of American citizenship.
He did this with his fists and determination. So it is fitting that he is honored with a place at the center of his hometown with an artwork as powerful and controversial as he was.
You can get a birds eye view of the Joe Louis Memorial on the Absolute Michigan map of Michigan. Also see Monuments of Detroit from the Detroit News, a slideshow of photos of the Fist and a video look at the Joe Louis Fist Statue. For more about Joe Louis, Wikipedia’s Joe Louis entry and the Official site of the Joe Louis Estate.
Foggy river
Foggy river, photo by kthschsslr.
kthschisser writes that he took this photo of a heron on the Flint River near Flushing while rushing to the airport.
Always good to have eyes open and camera handy…
Fiborn Quarry and the Michigan Karst Conservancy
Portal for the locomotives, photo by smartee_martee.
In addition to taking some great pictures, Marty does a wonderful job of digging up and presenting background information. Fiborn Quarry was one of the largest early 20th century quarry operations in the Upper Peninsula, and Marty’s Fiborn Quarry set (slideshow) begins:
Fiborn Quarry was created by a partnership of the Duluth, South Shore & Atlantic Railroad in 1904. This small company town was built to house the workers (homes and a boarding house), offer a school and a general store. The operations consisted of the quarry plant, crusher house and steam engine shop.
Marty goes on to tell you about the role of limestone in the history of the UP, and he also links over to the Michigan Karst Conservancy. In addition to extensive information on the history of Fiborn (be sure to click the little photos at the bottom of the pages too), the MKC tells you about karst:
Karst is a term that was first applied to a plateau region of the Dinaric Alps in Yugoslavia. It is now used to describe similar regions throughout the world that have features formed largely by underground drainage. Karst terrains are characterized by caves, steep valleys, sinkholes, and a general lack of surface streams because drainage is underground…
What does this have to do with Michigan, a land literally scoured by glaciers, a land covered with glacial clay, sand and gravel? Surprisingly, Michigan contains some areas of true karst. They are limited in extent, but this rarity increases their interest and importance. There is also considerable variety in Michigan karst areas: gypsum karst is found in Kent and Iosco counties; a significant amount of surface drainage goes underground in Monroe County, and reappears at “blue holes” in Lake Erie; spectacular sinkholes and earth cracks are found in Alpena and Presque Isle counties; and the broad band of outcrops of the Niagara Escarpment in the Upper Peninsula hosts a number of karst sinks, springs and caves.
platte lake
platte lake, photo by johnhoneyman.
John has some more beautiful photos of Northern Michigan and he’s thankfully uploaded them large enough to make great backgrounds for your computer!
The Platte River entry on Wikipedia gives you a pretty confusing look at the river’s watershed, so let’s turn to the Platte Lake Improvement Association which says that Big Platte Lake is located in Benzie County near the Village of Honor in northwest lower Michigan. It is approximately 3.3 miles long and 1.6 miles wide, covers approximately 2550 acres, has a maximum depth of 95 feet and an average depth of 24 feet. The primary source of water for Platte Lake is the inflow from the Upper Platte River. With an average inflow of about 4 million gallons per hour, water in the lake has a “residence time” of just 6 months – quite a bit faster than the 10 years most other lakes in the area average.
The site also includes a link to a 1901 article on from The Amateur Sportsman describing the fishing in the lake at the turn of the last century (pdf). I’m told that it’s still pretty darn good!
I’ve added Platte Lake to our Absolute Michigan map of Michigan.
stacked
stacked, photo by The Real Ferg.
Ferg took this @ Deepwater Point Natural Area. The Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy says Deepwater Point is a 15 acres property is owned by Acme Township on East Bay, north of Traverse City. The plaque reads:
In memory of Clyde H. Reed
Who along with his neighbors fought to protect Acme Township’s Deepwater Point Area – a place precious and dear to him. May we follow his example by being good stewards of this beautiful land for the benefit of future generations.
When I saw this photo, I realized that I had never shared on Michigan in Pictures something that I saw this summer. We called it the Amazing Frankfort Rock Gallery. I spend a ton of time on Michigan’s beaches, but this summer I seemed to see these rock structures everywhere. I wasn’t the only one either.
Anyone in the audience have any idea what’s behind this rock-stacking mania in Michigan?
Michigan in Pictures 