traverse city

The Goldenrod Spider didn’t bite Frank Carter

Posted on August 25, 2025August 25, 2025 by farlane

Cathy Griffin of the Traverse Area Historical Society shared a little news from 120 years ago in 1905:

FRANK CARTER, local resident who had been in Chicago and Grand Rapids during the summer, returned Monday night being ill from the poisonous effects of a spider which walked over his arm, leaving a poisonous track at every step. Last week, while lying on the ground at Grand Rapids, an immense yellow spider jumped on his arm near his elbow and ran down to his wrist. Mr. Carter smashed his poisonous body on his arm and it immediately began to swell from the poison. The arm was inflamed and swollen with white spots. Under the advice of a physician, Mr. Carter went home to care for his arm.

It’s been a minute since I’ve featured a photo from Gowtham. He shares that while driving through the back roads of Huron Mountains from Houghton to Marquette, “I took a few wrong forks in succession and one of those forks had a plethora of Blue Vervains (the flower in the picture). Taking one wrong fork after another, driving slow and paying attention paid off – as one of those blue vervains had an uncommon yellow tinge. I stopped to look carefully and much to my surprise was this tiny little Golden Rod Spider.”

…These spiders may be yellow or white, depending on the flower in which they are hunting. Especially younger females, which may hunt on a variety of flowers such as daisies and sunflowers, may change color “at will”. Older females require large amounts of relatively large prey to produce the best possible clutch of eggs. They are therefore, in North America, most commonly found in goldenrod (Solidago sp.), a bright yellow flower which attracts large numbers of insects, especially in autumn. It is often very hard even for a searching human to recognize one of these spiders on a yellow flower.”

See more in his Michigan Wild Flowers gallery on Flickr & be sure to keep an eye out for the little things!

I want to be very clear that this spider is not venomous (and no spider has “venomous tracks”). Only the Northern Black Widow and the Brown Recluse have bites that endanger humans. The rest are out there happily dispatching harmful pests. My guess is that it was a Brown Recluse as their bites have sort of a bullseye pattern with a white center.

Restoring Sturgeon to Michigan Waters

Posted on September 10, 2024 by farlane

2024 Boardman-Ottaway River Sturgeon Release Ceremony

via Leelanau.com…

On Saturday the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians held their first annual Sturgeon Release Ceremony to return Nmé (Lake Sturgeon) into the Boardman-Ottaway River. The event included a ceremony, prayers, food, drinks, and a community release of hundreds of juvenile Nmé. The photo shows Percy Bird releasing a young sturgeon into the Boardman-Ottaway.

Michigan Sea Grant shares that lake sturgeon live longer than any other fish species in Michigan with males living an average of 55 years and females 80-150 years. Despite their long lives, sturgeon are very slow to mature. It takes about 15 years for male lake sturgeon to reach reproductive maturity and 20-25 years for females. In early spring, adult sturgeon enter fast-flowing rivers to spawn. Female lake sturgeon spawn once every four years, each depositing million of eggs on gravel bars. It is estimated that only about 10-20 percent of adult lake sturgeon within a population spawn during a given year.

Thank you to the GTB Natural Resources Department & Grand Traverse Band members and all who were part of restoring balance to Michigan’s waters. Also thank you to my friend Holly T. Bird who shared this photo with me. She doesn’t have a photography website, but she is the co-executive director of the amazing organization Title Track that uses creative practice to build resilient social-ecological systems supporting clean water, racial equity, and youth empowerment.

Taking a break…

Posted on June 13, 2022 by farlane

Sunrise Greilickville Harbor Park by Jeff Hudson

Good morning everyone. Regrettably, I need to take a break which (fingers crossed) won’t be too terribly long to deal with some health issues. In the meantime, I hope all of you are able to enjoy the bounteous offerings of Michigan summertime!

Jeff took this photo two years ago at sunrise on June 29th (my birthday) in Traverse City (where I currently live), so I thought it would be a perfect placeholder while I’m gone. See more from Jeff in his Most Faved (Best of) gallery on Flickr.

Stormy September

Posted on September 14, 2021 by farlane

September Storm by Watermark Photography

Jeff got an incredible shot of a roll cloud from a recent severe storm in Traverse City. Follow Watermark Photography on Facebook & view and purchase canvas and other prints on his website!

Kirkbride’s beliefs became his buildings

Posted on November 30, 2020November 30, 2020 by farlane

2 Doors Down by Carolyn Gallo

CMU’s Clarke Historical Library says that on Nov 30, 1885, the Northern Michigan Asylum for the Insane opened in Traverse City. It’s now known as the The Village at Grand Traverse Commons and 10 years ago I worked there and was able to lead and was able to lead a group of photographers including Carolyn on a tour of the then un-renovated parts of what was known as Building 50. FYI, the section we toured is now the luxurious Cordia senior residential club.

The facility was a Kirkbride Institution, designed by Dr. Thomas Story Kirkbride. Kirkbride was a Pennsylvania Quaker and founding member of the Association of Medical Superintendents of American Institutions for the Insane who developed a concept of treatment known as the Kirkbride Plan. This plan proposed a particular way of housing patients that included segregating by severity of mental illness and fresh air and natural light where possible:

It was believed crucial to place patients in a more natural environment away from the pollutants and hectic energy of urban centers. Abundant fresh air and natural light not only contributed to a healthy environment, but also served to promote a more cheerful atmosphere. Extensive grounds with cultivated parks and farmland were also beneficial to the success of an asylum. Landscaped parks served to both stimulate and calm patients’ minds with natural beauty (enhanced by rational order) while improving the overall aspect of the asylum. Farmland served to make the asylum more self-sufficient by providing readily available food and other farm products at a minimal cost to the state.

Patients were encouraged to help work the farms and keep the grounds, as well as participate in other chores. Such structured occupation was meant to provide a sense of purpose and responsibility which, it was believed, would help regulate the mind as well as improve physical fitness. Patients were also encouraged to take part in recreations, games, and entertainments which would also engage their minds, make their stay more pleasant, and perhaps help foster and maintain social skills.

There’s lots more from Kirkbride Buildings where the author has done some spectacular scholarship and created an excellent resource for these amazing structures. The Kirkbride System produced a photographic environment of uncommon richness that is evident in the photos from the group A little trip up north… It’s also reflected in the grounds and the shops, restaurants & businesses that are part of the Commons today.

See this photo bigger in Carolyn’s Photogs Up North gallery. You can learn more about her on her website or Facebook page!

Socially Distanced Photography Bringing a Community Together

Posted on April 3, 2020April 3, 2020 by farlane

Socially Distanced Superhero by Exposures by Rah / Sarah Armstrong

Like most people these days, professional photographers are struggling as their livelihood vanishes down a Covid-19 rabbithole. One of my photographer friends in Traverse City came up with a cool way to continue working responsibly AND add to the community. Northern Michigan Porch-raits is a social distancing photography project from the safety of your home. 100% of the proceeds from each session fee will be donated to the amazing hometown heroes working tirelessly for the community at Munson Medical Center. Sarah writes:

I want people to feel good about supporting this project, and I really want to do my part to safely join the fight. As an artist and small business owner, I’ve felt pretty helpless and limited in how I can make a difference. I’m not good at sewing like all the wonderful people who are making masks, so this is my socially distanced creative way of giving back to the fight while also bringing joy to my community. It’s such a scary and uncertain time for everyone. My friends and family members are healthcare workers and have weakened immune systems. This is my way of feeling like I can make a difference.

Session fees will be waived for healthcare workers!

There’s no better time than now to have some photos of you and your quarantine crew using a telephoto lens from my car (seriously! I never even get out of my vehicle). Since everyone is home, many with their families, why not use this time to support a local art, give back to Munson AND receive a beautiful portrait to commemorate this extremely weird time This is not just for families! Have you ever had a nice photo taken of you and your dog? This is your chance to do it for a fraction of the normal price! When you sign up for this service from Exposures by Rah, you’ll pay a $20 fee to reserve your date/time. I will arrive with my telephoto lens to snap a handful of photos at a safe distance from my car.

You can check out the photos in her editorial gallery called Northern Michigan Porch-raits: The COVID-19 Sessions.

Walking on Water, Michigan Style

Posted on February 14, 2018 by farlane

Walking on Water, Michigan Style by Andrew McFarlane

Here’s a shot I took while standing on the amazingly clear ice on Lake Michigan’s Suttons Bay on last Saturday with my sweetheart! mLive liked it enough to share in their article about Grand Traverse Bay freezing over (Suttons Bay is a “sub-bay” of GT Bay – here’s a map):

“Back in the early to mid-1900s the bay froze 80-90% of the time,” said Heather Smith, Grand Traverse baykeeper for the center. “Around 1990, ice cover dropped to 20-30%.”

This winter is the eighth time Grand Traverse Bay has frozen over since 1990.

The frozen conditions likely extend far beyond Power Island, at least close to shore. Last weekend, ice boaters, ice fishermen and people walking their dogs flocked to the frozen surface of Suttons Bay for some winter fun.

Grand Traverse Bay is divided neatly by Old Mission Peninsula into its East Arm and its West Arm. Its East Arm runs north of Elk Rapids, while its West Arm includes the popular Power Island and extends to Suttons Bay. From there, the bay curves around the Leelanau Peninsula where it merges with Lake Michigan.

Happy Valentines Day everyone!!

Pride

Posted on June 21, 2017June 21, 2017 by farlane

Traverse City Pride March, photo by Michael Poehlman

Communities across Michigan have been celebrating Pride Month during the month of June, and I thought I would share one of my favorite photos ever. It was taken by my friend Michael at the annual Traverse City Pride Parade sponsored by Up North Pride. I’ll be joining thousands of others to march this Sunday (June 25) at noon – you can click that link for all the details.

I have no doubt that some may find this post controversial and ask me to “stick to pictures and not politics.” To any with that viewpoint, I would like to point out that this picture is NOT politics, this is personal. In addition to honoring the many photographers I feature on Michigan in Pictures who are lesbian, bisexual, gay, transgender, questioning or otherwise, I have many dear friends who are happily married to the love of their lives, and I believe at the very core of my being that they deserve every benefit of marriage & society that anyone else has.

Please feel free to enjoy my personal blog as I see fit to share it. If it offends you, suffer whatever slight this is for you in silence or simply stop following me. Whatever you do, don’t post anything hateful because I will ban you so fast and probably say mean things to you on the way out just to make it perfectly clear that I support the civil rights of every American.

OK, that’s more than enough justifying myself for posting whatever I feel like on my blog. Let’s hear what the Library of Congress has to say about Pride Month:

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month (LGBT Pride Month) is currently celebrated each year in the month of June to honor the 1969 Stonewall riots in Manhattan. The Stonewall riots were a tipping point for the Gay Liberation Movement in the United States. In the United States the last Sunday in June was initially celebrated as “Gay Pride Day,” but the actual day was flexible. In major cities across the nation the “day” soon grew to encompass a month-long series of events.

You can view the photo bigger on the Up North Pride Facebook page, follow Michael on Instagram, and if you’re looking for one of the finest portrait photographers I know, definitely consider Michael Poehlman Photography!

PS: His Personal Work gallery is really cool!

Sunset & cloud shadows over West Bay

Posted on April 28, 2017April 28, 2017 by farlane

26 April 2017 West Bay Leelanau County, photo by John Robert Williams Photography

Here’s a ridiculous sunset that my friend John captured on Wednesday night over West Grand Traverse Bay in Traverse City. The Rays & Shadows page from our friends at Atmospheric Optics identifies these as “cloud shadows” and says that they are basically the reverse of crepuscular rays, the beams of light that stream through gaps in clouds.

View it bigger and see more on John’s Facebook.