Eagle River-Keweenaw County by Kirt E. Carter
Kirt took this photo of the Eagle River with an ONDU 6×9 Pinhole with Ilford Pan F developed in Rodinal 1:50. You can see lots more through his Flickr & check out kirtecarterfineartphotography.com for other photos along with his writings about how he shoots these stunning pics & a link to his book on Northwest UP rivers!!
Shredder Schettin’ by PhotoYoop
One of my favorite Facebook follows is Cory Genovese aka PhotoYoop. He took this photo a couple days ago in some wild Lake Superior surf and writes:
Wait, that’s not right…I mean Schetter Shreddin’! ;)
A few rounds in Superior yesterday. The Zoo was close to as heavy as I’ve been in. Thankfully, our little South break was not. 4′ – 6′ 8/10ft 7secs air -1c sea 1c
Definitely follow him on Facebook and view & purchase photos at photoyoop.com!
Lots more surfing pics on Michigan in Pictures!
Reflections by Eric Hackney Photography
Here’s a #TBT (Throwback Thursday) pic from 3 years ago of the Portage Lake Lift Bridge between Houghton & Hancock on Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula. Wikipedia’s Portage Lake Lift Bridge entry says:
The Portage Lake Lift Bridge connects the cities of Hancock and Houghton, Michigan, USA, across Portage Lake, a portion of the waterway which cuts across the Keweenaw Peninsula with a canal linking the final several miles to Lake Superior to the northwest. US 41 and M-26 are both routed across the bridge.
The original bridge on this site was a wooden swing-bridge built in 1875. This was replaced by a steel swing-bridge built by the King Bridge Company in 1901. This bridge was damaged when a ship collided with it in 1905. The center swinging section of the bridge was replaced and a similar incident almost occurred again in 1920, but the ship was able to stop by dropping its anchor, which snagged on the bottom of the lake. In 1959, this bridge was replaced, at a cost of about 11-13 million US dollars (sources vary), by the current bridge which was built by the American Bridge Company.
As its name states, the bridge is a lift bridge with the middle section capable of being lifted from its low point of four feet clearance over the water to a clearance of 100 feet (30 m) to allow boats to pass underneath. The Bridge is the world’s heaviest and widest double-decked vertical lift bridge.Its center span “lifts” to provide 100 feet (30 m) of clearance for ships. The bridge is a crucial lifeline, since it is the only land based link between the north (so-called Copper Island) and south sections of the Keweenaw peninsula.
You can view the photo & more on Eric’s Facebook page and see a stunning shot of a rainbow over the bridge & more from Eric on Michigan in Pictures.
More bridges on Michigan in Pictures.
Ghostly streets, in color! by Bryan Esler
Bryan took this a few days ago in downtown Grand Rapids. Check out the Michigan in Pictures Facebook for a nighttime photo of GR and see more in his Life under Covid-19 album.
Stay safe everyone!
Mark “The Bird” Fidrych courtesy Mark Fidrych Foundation
Mark Fidrych reminded you of your childhood, no matter how old you were when he pitched. This was his charm, his curse, his legacy. He personified athletic innocence.
-Michael Rosenberg, Detroit Free Press
More about this weird and wonderful character can be found at BaseballReference.com’s page for Mark Steven Fidrych and definitely watch this interview with Fydrich for a look at this Detroit Tiger original!
Wild Day on Lake Michigan by Bob Gudas
mLive reports that the storm systems that have been tearing across the country are coming to Michigan today, bringing high wind warnings to the state & dumping up to 2 feet of snow on the UP:
Lower Michigan should have peak wind gusts between 45 mph and 55 mph. There could be an isolated wind gust just over 55 mph. The strongest gusts would likely be right along the Lake Michigan shoreline due to the wind accelerating over the Great Lakes water and on the eastern fringe of the Lower Peninsula.
The northeast shoreline of Lower Michigan, from Tawas City to Alpena to Rogers City, will likely have the highest widespread wind gusts. There will also be a pick-up of winds right at the Lake Michigan shoreline.
The Upper Peninsula will stay on the cold side of the storm. Wind gusts will still be strong, up to 45 mph. Snow will be the main issue. Some parts of the U.P. will have very heavy snowfall.
A large part of the western two-thirds of the U.P. will have over one foot of snow. Some areas in the higher elevations along the Lake Superior shoreline near Marquette could have up to two feet of snow. The heavy snow combined with strong winds will likely cause power outages.
In Lower Michigan, there will be two snowfall patterns. Northwest Lower Michigan will have the changeover to snow just as the main precipitation area of the storm is winding down. Northwest Lower could have a couple of hours of meaningful snowfall. As a result, look for one to three inches of snow on the grass Monday night in northwest Lower. This would include Traverse City, Cadillac, Charlevoix, Petoskey, Gaylord and Mackinaw City.
Stay warm & stay safe everyone!
Bob took this shot of gale force winds hitting the pier at Grand Haven back in Ovtober of 2015. See it and more in his Explore album on Flickr.
More wind on Michigan in Pictures!
Yesterday, Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced an extension of Michigan’s stay at home order to April 30th. The state also released clarifications of the order including that motorboats are not allowed under Michigan’s stay-at-home order:
Motorboats, jet skis and other motorized watercraft are not considered permittable outdoor activity under the revised stay-at-home order in effect through April 30, according to a clarification posted to the state’s coronavirus stay-at-home order FAQ page.
When it comes to the water, the order allows self-propelled boats like kayaks, canoes or sailboats, according to the state, although any outdoor activity permitted under the order “must be done in a manner consistent with social distancing, and individuals should use only their own equipment to prevent the transmission of the virus through the touching of shared surfaces.”
People who are not part of a single household are not allowed to boat together under the provision that prevents gatherings, the clarification notes.
Read more at mLive & definitely check out the FAQs.
Jack took this photo of a Pomeranian enjoying a paddle board ride on the Muskegon River near Big Rapids back in June of 2016. Dive into his photos on Flickr.
See more paddleboard pics on Michigan in Pictures. Stay safe & strong.
Retired Fishing Boats by Andy Farmer
If you’re anything like me, not being able to ramble off to all corners of Michigan is probably grating on you. To help a little with cabin fever, the West Michigan Tourist Association’s live webcam gallery features a great collection of webcams all along the west side of the state. One of these is the Beaver Island Chamber of Commerce’s Harbor webcam, and you can view that one and more at the link!
While this photo isn’t quite the view, I thought it was too beautiful not to share! See it and lots more in Andy’s Beaver Island, MI gallery.
A Blue Like No Other by Jamie MacDonald
Here’s a Throwback Thursday from April of 2009 in honor of Spring, which I hear is still happening. The resource on the initial post is no longer online, so I dug up this post from The Spruce explaining why robin eggs are blue:
The color of an eggshell is determined by pigments deposited as the shell is formed in the shell gland. The shell gland is the avian equivalent of a mammal’s uterus and is near the end of the oviduct, just before the cloaca. The shell is formed just before the egg is laid.
The bile pigment biliverdin is responsible for blue tones in bird eggs. Depending on the concentration of the pigment, the coloration can range from bright, bold blue or blue-green to pale ice blue and every shade in between. Smaller eggs and those laid first in a brood are usually more intensely colored than larger eggs or those laid later in the nesting cycle.
In addition to coloring eggshells, biliverdin is also responsible for blue tones in moth and butterfly wings, and is the same pigment that makes bruises turn bluish-green.
Read on for more and see a bunch more awesome shots in Jamie’s Nature photo album.
Detroit lit up in red white and blue by kare hav
Here’s an absolutely stunning photo from yesterday that’s the latest cover for the Michigan in Pictures Facebook page. It shows the city of Detroit from across the Detroit River as it lights up the night in red white and blue to honor medical professionals, first responders & service workers.
They definitely need all our support. The Detroit Metro Times reports that the Covid-19 pandemic is hitting Detroit harder than New York City:
In just the past three days, Detroit’s death toll nearly doubled, reaching 221 on Tuesday. During that period, the city averaged more than 3o deaths a day. And public health officials warn that the worst is yet to come.
Detroit has a rate of 32.9 coronavirus deaths per 100,000 people, compared to 21.2 deaths per 100,000 people in New York City. More than 5,500 Detroit residents have tested positive for COVID-19 — a nearly five-fold increase since March 27. With a severe shortage of testing kits, public health officials believe far many more Detroiters have been infected.
Mayor Mike Duggan has made it a priority to increase the city’s testing capacity. Frustrated by the slow pace of testing, Duggan led the creation of a regional site at the former Michigan State Fairgrounds at Eight Mile and Woodward, where he expects at least 14,000 people will be tested for COVID-19 over the next six weeks. During the first two days, 43% of the people who were tested were positive for the coronavirus. The city is also working with doctors who are willing to see patients who don’t have insurance.
“We’re going to make testing available to every single person in this city who needs [it],” Duggan said Thursday. “It is critical that every single Detroiter have access to this.”
Duggan said the city is now testing 800 people a day.
More than 150 Detroit Police Department employees, including Chief James Craig, have tested positive for COVID-19, and an additional 524 officers and police civilians were under quarantine, as of last week. At least 43 firefighters and medics also have confirmed infections, and more than 75 have been under quarantine.
Read the rest at the Metro Times & see more of Michigan’s largest city in Kare’s Detroit photo album.
Please feel welcome to share photos or info about ways your community is coming together to support medical & essential people in this dark time & please stay safe!!
Michigan in Pictures 