Waterfall Wednesday: Lower Tahquamenon Falls

Lower Tahquamenon by Dan Gaken

GoWaterfalling explains that Lower Tahquamenon Falls is part of:

…Tahquamenon Falls State Park on MI-123. It is on the map and is easy to find, but it is a bit out of the way. There are three sections to the park: the Upper Falls, the Lower Falls, and the rivermouth campsite.

The lower falls are a series of cascades, that go around a small island, with several drops in the 10 foot range. You can rent a boat and go to the island, and walk around and see more views of the falls. There is a campground near the lower falls, and a concession stand where you can buy ice cream, drinks and souvenirs.

There is a trail between the upper and the lower falls. It is 4+ miles, with some ups and downs, mostly through woods well above the river. The river is quite calm between the two falls, and there is not much rock to see.

I know that I just featured a photo from Dan of the Upper Falls, but this one from Saturday was too good to pass up! See more in Dan’s Michigan’s Upper Peninsula gallery on Flickr!

Sunrise at Tahquamenon

Sunrise at Tahquamenon by Dan Gaken

Here’s a stunning moment from Tahquamenon Falls that Dan captured this weekend.  More from Dan in his Michigan’s Upper Peninsula gallery on Flickr!

Short’s Brewing: Pub or Pacman?

Shorts Brewing Kegger Campground in Bellaire

One thing that the Coronavirus pandemic has proven is that Michiganders aren’t afraid to get creative. One of Michigan’s most creative breweries, Shorts Brewing Co of Bellaire, is no exception. Last week they shared this photo saying: A rad aerial view of Kegger Campground across the street from the Bellaire Pub or an original sketch for Pac-Man? Come check it out for yourself! Firewood is available at the Pub, and you can take your food and drink over to your own little winter wonderland.

See the photo bigger on their Facebook page & get details about Shorts at shortsbrewing.com!

Restoring the Arctic Grayling to Michigan

Arctic Grayling by Michigan Arctic Grayling Initiative

The Michigan Arctic Grayling Initiative is a group of more than 50 partners working to restore self-sustaining populations of the Arctic grayling within its historical range in Michigan:

Arctic grayling thrived in Northern Michigan’s coldwater streams until the onset of the 20th Century. Fishermen and wildlife enthusiasts visited destinations such as the Au Sable River in Grayling for this iridescent fish. But by the 1930s, three factors contributed to the grayling’s demise: habitat destruction, unregulated harvest and predation/competition from non-native fish species. The local extinction of this wild fish was a tragic loss for Michigan. 
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The Michigan Arctic Grayling Initiative documentary was created by a group of Troy Athens high school students & I encourage you to check it out!

Just Cruising at the Mighty Mac

Just Cruising by Marsha Morningstar

Seems like everyone’s going to the Straits these days to check out the ice at the Mackinac Bridge! 

More from Marsha on her Flickr including a close up shot of these two cuties!

Blue Ice at the Mackinac Bridge

Blue Ice by Julie

Julie shares:

Rode up to Mackinaw yesterday and checked out the blue ice. Huge chunks and most phenomenal. The ice, however, is not actually turning blue. The color is a result of the way sunlight is bouncing off this particular ice.

Sometimes, weather conditions — such as a lack of high winds — allow water to freeze slowly and evenly, resulting in ice composed of large crystals (unlike snow, which is formed quickly and made up of small crystals).

When light hits these big ice crystals, it can travel deep into the structures (compare this to snow, wherein light hits a sharp edge and reflects off of it right away, resulting in blinding white). When the light travels deeper into slowly formed ice, some of the red wavelengths of sunlight — which is the longest wavelength of visible light — get absorbed into the ice structure.

The blue, which is the shortest wavelength of visible light, bounces back out, meet our eyes, and results in a deep aqua color.

See more in her Winter gallery on Flickr!

Michigan Beach Fashion: February Edition

South Haven Area Fire-Rescue-EMS by William Dolak

We’re getting to the portion of the winter where the ice begins to build out on the Great Lakes. As a person who grew up on Lake Michigan, I’ve enjoyed the ice safely for decades & will undoubtedly continue to do so and also to share photos of the incredible beauty of the frozen lakes. I want to make sure however that folks understand venturing on the ice in winter can be deadly, particularly if you don’t take precautions. Though EMT workers know this and train to help people in peril, if you fall into one of the Great Lakes, you will very probably die. You can read more of my thoughts on this post on Michigan in Pictures.

Bill took this last weekend in South Haven & writes:

It’s 16 degrees at the beach – this is what the cool kids are wearing on South Beach, South Haven. These three are with the South Haven Area Fire-Rescue-EMS and were out to practice a little cold-water rescue, ‘cuz, unfortunately, someone is gonna need it sooner or later.

See the photo bigger in our Michigan in Pictures Group on Facebook & for sure follow him on Flickr!

Perseverance: New Mars Rover Lands Today

Milky Way + Mars viewed from Garden Peninsula MI by Daniel Sandin

NASA’s Perseverance Rover will land on the surface of Mars today, Feb. 18, 2021 in a search for ancient life that will test the next generation of exploration tools:

Perseverance is the most sophisticated rover NASA has ever sent to the Red Planet, with a name that embodies NASA’s passion, and our nation’s capability, to take on and overcome challenges. It will collect carefully selected and documented rock and sediment samples for future return to Earth, search for signs of ancient microbial life, characterize the planet’s geology and climate, and pave the way for human exploration beyond the Moon.

Perseverance is also ferrying several cutting-edge technologies to the surface of Mars – including a helicopter named Ingenuity, the first aircraft to attempt powered, controlled flight on another planet.

The landing takes place just before 4 PM EST & you can watch online at NASA.

Daniel took this photo back of Mars in July of 2018 on the UP’s Garden Peninsula. See more great night photography on his Flickr & for sure check out his website – he looks like a very interesting guy!

Here’s NASA’s YouTube stream which goes live around 2 PM today.

Waves at Silver Lake Sand Dunes

Silver Dunes Sand Waves by Charles Bonham

In case any of you are feeling like me & longing for a little warmth, here’s a shot from a couple years ago at Silver Lake Sand Dunes. Head over to Charles’ Flickr for his latest!

More dunes on Michigan in Pictures!

Pancake Ice

Pancake Ice by Julie

This is one of the best shots I’ve seen showing how the structure of pancake ice is basically “round iceberg”. The Weather Channel explains the science behind pancake ice:

The circular slabs you see can range anywhere from one to 10 feet in diameter and up to four inches thick, typically forming in areas with at least some wave action and air temperatures just below freezing.

Pancake ice can begin as a thin ice layer (known as grease ice) or slush on the water surface, which accumulates into quasi-circular disks. The “lily pad,” or raised-edge appearance of pancake ice, can form when each disk bumps up against one another, or when slush splashes onto and then freezes on the slab’s edge.

Julie caught this picture last week in Charlevoix’s channel to Lake Michigan. See more in her Coronavirus Times 2021 gallery on Flickr.