North Bay Park - September

These pictures were taken between the 15th and 22nd of September.


The boardwalk.



An unknown bird.



A closeup.



Another water bird taking off.



The swans.



The young swan preening.



The swans with the boardwalk in the background.



One of the bridges in the morning light.



Across the bay.



Along the boardwalk.

September 11

I headed out to North Bay Park again today. There were a bunch of ducks bathing. Instead of swimming out into the lake as usual, they hung around the shoreline. I kept trying to get a shot of them doing something other than bobbing around in the water, but seemed to just miss any kind of action.



Until I got this shot.



The swans again. They were out in the middle of the bay and I had to use the digital zoom to get a halfway decent pictures.



As I was leaving the park, it started to rain. The only place where I could have stopped for a good picture of the double rainbow was on the exit ramp. Since I didn't want to stop there, I headed to my apartment complex and took this. Try as I might, there wasn't a good place to set up for a shot.

September 6th, 2011

I had Tuesday, the 6th off and decided to go to North Bay Park.

As I stepped out of my apartment, there was a dragonfly sitting on the sidewalk. I reached down and touched it on the tail and it flipped over, righted itself, and sat there. A moment later it flew to a tree. This is the only decent photo I got of it.



Purple Loosestrife.



The boardwalk.



Signs of Fall.



The swans. Unfortunately, the lighting was very poor so the picture didn't turn out very well and the coloring of the baby isn't very clear.

Boat watching - Riverside Park

A week ago, a friend of mine asked if I wanted to go ship watching. I reluctantly agreed because I had a lot to do around my place, but I'm glad I decided to go. It was a really nice day and we saw a number of boats.



We stopped at Riverside Park in Detroit. The park itself is a dump, but it is a great spot for ship watching. There is also a nice view of the Detroit Skyline.



This is the Friendship based out of Portofinos Restaurant in Wyandotte.



At the north end of the park the J. W. Westcott II is docked. It delivers mail to ships as they pass Detroit. It has it's own zipcode, 48222. Here she is leaving the dock with Detroit in the background. I was surprised to see it running on a Sunday, figuring it was a government operation. Upon further investigation, it appears that she is actually run by the J.W. Westcott Company and is contracted to the postal service.



The J.W. Westcott II as she passes by Riverside Park.



The Orsula and J.W. Westcott II as they approach Riverside Park. For comparison, the J.W. Westcott II is 45 feet long.




The J.W. Westcott II alongside the Orsula. It appears as if she were delivering a crewman aboard as we watched someone climb a ladder to the deck of the Orsula.



Passing underneath the Ambassador Bridge.



From left to right. The downbound Saguenay. The J.W. Westcott II returning to port. The upbound Orsula. An unidentified motorboat.



The Saguenay and the Orsula.



The Saguenay approaches the Ambassador Bridge.



Downbound.



The American Mariner with the Detroit River Princess maneuvering.



The American Mariner.



Heading south.

Frankfort, Michigan and surrounding area

I mixed up the order of these pictures and didn't feel like going back and arranging them in order. Their locations jump around a bit.


I took a day trip to Frankfort, Michigan. Just outside of the town is this gateway. On top of the marker is a model ship that seem very detailed. This is looking east, away from town.



I swapped cars with my brother for the day. This is his car, which I love. I'm tempted to mug him and take the keys.



The lighthouse at Frankfort. Unfortunately, although I walked out to the lighthouse, I did not take any other pictures.



A leaf on the North Country Trail.



I saw a sign for the North Country Trail, made a slight detour and took a very short walk down the trail.



Sleeping Bear is a bit north of Frankfort. I arrived just as the sun was setting.



A sailboat in the bay at Frankfort.



I met my father and his wife at Frankfort. We walked out to the lighthouse, then had dinner on the patio of a restaurant. This was taken from the park across the street. The weather was perfect. The food was great. The scenery was beautiful. Check out the Bayview Grille if you get a chance. I recommend the Whitefish.



The south pier light.



Looking back from the lighthouse towards the entrance to the bay and south of Frankfort.

North Bay Park - August

I really like this park. You have paved sections, a long boardwalk, and portions of the trail that are dirt/gravel.



Two of the bridges with the observation tower on the right.



The boardwalk.



Looking back across the bay.



The swans. I noticed on my walk today, 9/2/11, that the color of the young one is starting to turn white.

Two Bridges

After leaving the rest area I stopped for a few minutes at the Cut River Bridge to see if I could get any pictures. The sun was setting. The Moon was out. But I still couldn't get a decent picture. I snapped this one as a car was approaching from behind me and it turned out okay.



After the Cut River Bridge, I passed through St. Ignace on the way home. I stopped in the bridge overlook area and snapped this picture.

I think they both turned out okay for low light, long exposure images taken without a tripod.