World Turtle Day (May 23) is just a week away so it felt like a perfect time to bring back this photogenic painted turtle for an encore! See more in R Miller’s water gallery on Flickr.
This is a good time of year to take a moment to be aware of ghost bikes and the important message these plain white bikes are trying to sear into the brain of every driver: Watch out for bikes.
You don’t get a second chance to un-kill or un-maim someone when you hit them with your car, something a nameless driver almost proved on me yesterday when they sped out of a parking lot, nearly hitting me. It only takes a momentary lapse of attention, a glance at the phone or simply a wandering mind can create another of these somber memorials in a heartbeat.
Paul Kissel shared this photo in the Michigan Ghost Bikes group writing Placed a TRIBUTE ghost bike at the Farmers Market downtown Muskegon prior to the Ride of Silence this Wednesday. Hope it reminds passersby of our cause, our purpose, and the reason we pay tribute.
The Presque Isle Township Museum Society reminds you that it’s never too early to start planning your summer Michigan Lighthouse Tour! The drive from Tawas to Mackinaw City along Heritage Route 23 will let you explore the lighthouses of the Sunrise Side. Click that link for a map & much more!!
Lighthouse historian Terry Pepper is no longer with us, but his words still illuminate the rich history of Michigan lighthouses at Seeing the Light. His entry on the Thunder Bay Island Lighthouse says (in part):
Thunder Bay Island sits just three miles East-northeast of the north point of Thunder Bay, and thirteen miles from the harbor at Alpena. This 215-acre limestone island is the outermost of a group of islands connected to the shore by a shallow rocky shoal. As such, it represented both a significant marker for Northbound vessels making the turn toward the Straits, and stood ready to chew the wooden hulls of vessels unlucky enough to stray too close to its rocky shores.
…With rapidly increasing maritime traffic through the 1850’s, the Lighthouse Board determined that the combination of inefficient Lewis lamps and the diminutive 40-foot height of the tower provided a less than effective aid to mariners relying on this important station. To rectify the situation, plans were formulated to increase the height of the tower and to install an improved French Fresnel lenses of the type currently being installed throughout the system. Over 1857, the upper 14 feet of the tower was encased in brick and continued above the upper limits of the old structure to a height of 50 feet, effectively increasing the total height of the tower by 10 feet. The entire exterior of the tower was then given a veneer of Cream City brick to provide a smooth, weather-proof surface. At completion of the masonry work, the renewed walls at the base of the tower stood a massive 79 inches thick, and tapered to a thickness of 20 inches at their uppermost.
Atop this renovated tower, a new gallery with a cast iron hand railing was installed, and a ten-sided prefabricated cast iron lantern installed at its center. Within this new lantern, a Fourth Order Fresnel lens manufactured by Sautter of Paris equipped with six bulls-eye flash panels was installed on a cast iron pedestal and equipped with a clockwork rotating mechanism. This new improved illuminating apparatus provided a characteristic fixed white light varied by flashes, and its enhanced focal plane of 59 feet provided an increased range of visibility of 14 miles at sea.
Read on for much more! Also, a very big thank you to the Great Lakes Lighthouse Keepers Association who have been sharing some great pics in our Michigan in Pictures group on Facebook! They do so much to preserve Michigan’s lighthouse and maritime legacy!!
Last weekend saw a truly historic outburst of the aurora borealis, with the intensity scale reaching G5 three times, something that normally happens only 3 or 4 times every decade!! So many photographers featured in our Northern Lights category have great photos shared on their social media, but I wanted to get a pic from a place that’s normally left out of the cosmic fun!
Tom got this shot looking over Saginaw Bay on Friday night saying “I kid you not – these brilliant colors are in the Aurora as it first appeared. Minimal and normal editing of the raw files is all I did (except maybe the first image which i may have increased yellow and green saturation). As the night wore on the reds, pinks, disappeared and it was brilliant green.” See a bunch more on his Facebook!!
Shawn Malone shared this photo yesterday saying: Incredible. There are now 4 CME’s earthward directed headed our way in the next few days. Levels of up to G4 storming are now forecast for auroras (see below for chart). Two of the CME’s merging late the 10th into the 11th are responsible for the G4 forecast for that time. I can’t ever remember this many earthward CME’s in such a short period of time from one region (3664 in this case).
…This is pretty amazing. Region 3664 is HUGE. Looks like that region alone has released 5 CMEs now, the last one tbd if it is earthward, but the rest appear to be with G4 storming in the forecast for Fri into Sat and very possibly beyond. This is the weekend to make a trip if you can, however we have cloud cover tomorrow night (aka tonight), MN looks better in that respect
The storms rolled through around 6 p.m. and 7 p.m., causing thousands to lose power. Some of the heaviest damage was concentrated around Westnedge Avenue, Centre Avenue and Oakland Drive, according to Portage city officials.
The FedEx building at 6701 Portage Road sustained a direct hit from one of the reported tornadoes. The roof of the building caved in, leaving the interior exposed. After the storm passed, 50 employees were trapped inside as crews worked to remove dangerous wires so rescue efforts could commence. First responders eventually helped them all out of the building, Tuesday night.
Another spot with major damage was Pavilion Estates Mobile Home Park, 6830 East N Ave. in Pavilion Township, just east of Portage. About 17 of the homes were totally demolished and 173 had some degree of damage, according to the Kalamazoo County Sheriff’s Office.
The Bardenhagen Berries Farm shares: The sweet cherries 🍒 are in full bloom & it’s a beautiful 🤩 sight all around! What a beautiful day! Strawberries 🍓 usually start blooming around a week or so after cherries. All things considered, this past winter was reported as the warmest on record- and there is a very good chance many fruit crops (assuming they don’t get frosted out) will be a week or more earlier than usual. Follow along right here for updates on the 2024 growing season!
During a presentation to the Detroit City Council to secure permits, Michigan Central CEO Josh Sirefman detailed the “Open Live” concert slated for June 6, which will be streamed globally from the Roosevelt Park location just north of the iconic train station. The free event will welcome 15,000 attendees with pre-registration required, offering a 90-minute concert headlined by yet-to-be-announced entertainment.
…From June 7-16, Michigan Central will host an open house to welcome up to 60,000 visitors, offering a glimpse into the meticulously restored 1913 structure. Additional tours will be available every Friday and Saturday through August 31 with pre-registration. These events aim to celebrate the building’s restoration and showcase its transformation. Michigan Central is coordinating with city officials, including the mayor’s office, police and fire departments, and a private security consulting firm to ensure a safe experience, drawing on insights from Detroit’s recent hosting of the NFL Draft.
“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.” -Albert Einstein
Julie shared this photo back in April of 2021, but I wanted to make sure everybody saw these sweet little fox babies. She has more great photos of these foxes & others having fun on Flickr.
Have a great weekend everyone, and if you have an extra dollar or three & enjoy Michigan in Pictures, consider clicking the Patreon button below to help me reach my current goal, an asiago bacon croissant at Cannelle Detroit! 😋
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