The Answer is Blowing in the Wind

Here is an excellent explanation of wind power in the Great Lakes.  It's 12 minutes long and well worth watching.

The Dynamic Great Lakes

I am a lake watcher.  Yesterday there was snow on Lake Michigan here in West Michigan.  Today people should stay off of piers because of the high waves.  Usually, ice begins to form on the shore by Thanksgiving.  I am watching to see if it does this year.

The title of my book, The Dynamic Great Lakes, is about how and why the five Great Lakes change.  They are always changing.  There is a new edition out for 2010 with updates.

Here is the best place to order a new copy online: http://www.publishamerica.net/product23502.html

Milkweed

Milkweed seeds blow in the wind.  Monarch butterflies need milkweed to carry out their life cycles.  We often see them migrating along the shores of the Great Lakes.

9&10 News - Alpena's Amazing Sinkholes

9&10 News - Alpena's Amazing Sinkholes Here is a link to a video and story about what lies under Lake Huron near Alpena, Michigan.

Herring Gull Reflected on the Beach

A herring gull stands reflected in the water.  Breakers roll in and in the distance is the pier with its lighthouse and foghorn.  This is the place where the Grand River enters Lake Michigan.  Sometimes, with a little luck, fishermen catch whitefish this time of year or anything else that swims by.  Some use salmon eggs as bait.

Palisades Nuclear Power Plant

Nuclear power plants must be maintained diligently.  If there is not good oversight, the Great Lakes, the world's greatest freshwater system is at risk.

The link below explains the problems.


http://michiganmessenger.com/43271/entergy-accused-of-poor-maintenance-at-palisades-nuke-plant

There are 37 aging nuclear power plants in the Great Lakes basin.

Swans

I love to see swans on the lake or flying over it.  They are very beautiful.  They can be feisty though.  They have gone after people who approach their nests too closely.

The Dynamic Great Lakes non fiction book

http://www.publishamerica.net/     Best Price from the publisher: $12.95 + shipping

The Dynamic Great Lakes is a critically acclaimed non-fiction book about changes in the Great Lakes through the works of nature and the hand of man.

The book includes the five Great Lakes and their connecting waters since this is all one flowing river of freshwater seas.

Bird Watching on Lake Michigan

We often see swans flying over Lake Michigan.  They like the marshes on the tributaries near us.
This is good habitat for the blue heron pictured below. We occasionally see the American bald eagle, sand hill cranes flying in formation, Canadian geese and many varieties of ducks. There is a pileated woodpecker that hangs around the neighborhood and several sorts of owls we hear at night and occasionally see.

The hummingbirds we fed all summer have left and now we get chickadees, nuthatches, cardinals and downy woodpeckers.