The 26th annual Grand Marais Splash-in on the Bay starts today (June 12) & runs through Sunday. If you get a chance to head up, highlights include a Seaplane Poker Run on Friday & Saturday competitions including a Balloon Target Drop and Take-off / Landing contests!
Even if you can’t make it, you can count on Michigan in Pictures’ Official Grand Marais photographer Gary McCormick to bring you some great pics. Check out some from last year below, view & purchase prints on his website & for sure follow Footsore Fotography on Facebook for his latest!
Adjectives commonly applied to nature are typically “grand” or “majestic” but Howell Nature Center reminds us to save a little room for fun.“Enjoy these wildly unflattering yet totally adorable photos of our animal ambassadors caught in all their goofy glory 🤪🦊🦉🦝 Come learn their stories and see the real wildlife behind the camera!
“Ross Lang was known by many as a fisherman’s fisherman, respected by everyone who knew him for his efficiency, determination, and ingenuity. The shock experienced by all when he died in a fishing accident on a beautiful calm April day in 1998 is still felt today.” –Fishtown Preservation
Once upon a time, Joy Lang Anderson & her husband Ross were my across the street neighbors in the village of Leland. Back in 2017, I sat down with her in Leland’s Fishtown to talk about how she & Ross (both UP natives) ended up integral parts of the village of Leland and its fishing history. I hope you enjoy it!
The photos of the Joy were taken by Mark Smith (I took the pic of Ross’s marker). See more in Mark’s Leland album on Flickr and for sure view & purchase Mark’s work at Leelanau Landscapes.
“Unfortunately, what you’re seeing today is not fog surrounding the Mackinac Bridge but smoke coming from the wildfires and our neighbors to the North.” -The Mackinac Bridge on X (which I won’t link to)
Yesterday morning the Mackinac Bridge Cam captured smoke so dense that it looked like the bridge was shrouded in fog! There’s less today but it’s still an astonishing amount of smoke so be sure to keep an eye on your local air quality because as the map shows, it’s not great right now!
Kevin came across a Great Horned Owlet sitting on a tree branch right over the trail. He shares that Great horned owl talons are incredibly strong, with some individuals capable of exerting a gripping pressure of 200 to 500 pounds per square inch. This powerful grip, along with their size, allows them to capture and subdue prey, including those much larger than themselves.
June is Pride Month, which means that a lot of people are getting mad about rainbows right now. As a wholehearted supporter of the right for people to love, marry & be who they choose to be, that seems really silly but I guess that’s where we are.
I’m sharing these photos because Michigan in Pictures wholeheartedly supports the rights of people to love & marry who they choose, but also because a whole month of rainbows gives me a chance to post about how cool rainbows are starting with this shot of a rainbow with anti-crepuscular rays that Jamie took!
My go-to rainbow resource for years has been Atmospheric Optics, and they explain that wile crepuscular rays appear to converge on the sun, anticrepuscular or antisolar rays converge in the opposite direction and you must have your back to the sun or sunset point to see them:
They appear to converge towards the antisolar point, the point on the sky sphere directly opposite the sun. Like crepuscular rays they are parallel shafts of sunlight from holes in the clouds and their apparently odd directions are a perspective effect. Think of a long straight road, it converges towards the horizon but turn around and it also converges to the opposite horizon. Crepuscular and anticrepuscular rays behave in the same way. Anticrepuscular rays are not rare but they must be sought carefully. When ordinary crepuscular rays are visible, turn around and search for their opposite numbers.
The 2025 Detroit Grand Prix runs Friday May 30 – Sunday June 1 in downtown Detroit along the riverfront. On Friday they have a couple of grandstand sections free on a first come, first served basis. There are also free viewing platforms located along Jefferson Avenue that are wheelchair accessible & free all weekend. Hart Plaza and Woodward Avenue will be fully activated and free to the public all weekend with fun activations and merchandise vendors.
It’s a pretty cool experience if you’re able to check it out. I combed through the Detroit Grand Prix’s Facebook photos for a representative selection.
Some gorgeous springtime pics from John along with a reminder to enjoy it while it’s here! See his latest on Facebook or Instagram and for sure view & purchase his work on his website.
World Turtle Day was created by American Tortoise Rescue as an annual day of recognition to raise awareness about turtles & help preserve endangered turtles worldwide. Michigan has ten species of native turtles including Michigan’s state reptile, the Painted Turtle, but I was today years old when I learned there’s such a thing as the Midland Painted Turtle (pictured above)! Herpman explains in the Painted Turtle entry in his Michigan Herpetological Atlas that:
Four distinct subspecies are recognized, two of which are found in the Great Lakes basin. The Midland Painted Turtle (C. picta marginata) tends to have prominent red stripes on forelegs and neck, and plastron is usually yellow or orangish yellow with elongate dark central blotch that does not cover more than half the plastral width. The Western Painted Turtle (C. picta belli) usually has narrow yellow stripes on forelegs and neck, and a pattern of light lines on the carapace.
Plastron (shell) may be reddish or orangish, with complex central pattern of dark and light lines that extends out along the scute seams and often covers more than half of the plastral width.Intergrade individuals within the overlapping range display a variable blending of these characteristics.
You can see the difference pretty easily in the photos of the Midland Painted Turtle by Kobie Mercury-Clarke on the left and the Western Painted Turtle from the US Fish & Wildlife Service. However, as you can see on the map, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula has some intergrade turtling going on.
David took the top photo last April. Here are some more of his Painted turtle pics along with one of two Map turtles doing a “turtle stack”. See David’s latest pics including a Calico Pennant Dragonfly on Flickr & for sure visit his blog to read about Red Cedar River turtles & other important things.
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