Sand Sculptured by Mother Nature

Sometimes ice and wind carve sand into shapes.  These sand sculptures make me imagine a game of checkers or an army of trolls marching.  I took these photos a couple of years ago.

It's That Time of Year. Coast Guard Ice Rescue video

Here is a video of an ice rescue by the Coast Guard.  It is dangerous to go out on the ice this time of year on the Great Lakes.

So Be Careful. Watch Out for the Ice Trolls

It’s a typical February day at the beach in West Michigan. Blown in by northwest winds, wave after wave smashes against ice ridges on the shore of Lake Michigan. Ice balls bounce and roll—their clattering sound mingles with the swoosh of the spray and the roar of wind and waves. Children who built sand castles on this beach in the summer now look in wonder at the fantastic shapes wind and waves have carved. It looks as though a giant ice troll had been playing there, heaping mounds of ice, gouging out ice caverns, grottos and deep crevices then smoothing off ice shelves. Perhaps another troll came along and smashed some of the ice into huge shards that clink together in the water like pieces of a broken plate glass window.

Quirks of wind, waves and the configuration of the lake bottom cause the shore ice to change from day to day and even change from minute to minute. It seems as if a sleight of hand magician were playing tricks with water, wind and ice.

One of these tricks is to strand wildlife, dogs or people on a floating cake of ice. This happens when pack ice, floating pieces of ice compacted against the solid ice ridge, is blown out in the lake again by an east wind. So be careful if you are going to the beach.

Sundown over Lake Michigan

After sundown last night, the wind picked up and threw chunks of ice at us.  On Lake Michigan's beach the ice continues to build.  It is treacherous to walk here since it is difficult to tell whether you have sand or water underneath you.

Beach Scene on Lake Michigan: Winter

Grand Haven beach on Lake Michigan covered with ice and snow.  In the background is the pier.

Wave and wind action creates ice ridges when the weather is as cold as it has been the past few days.

Today I saw three American bald eagles.  They have their courtship rituals in February.  In the Middle Ages people thought February 14 (Valentine's Day) is the day the birds get married.

Ice on Lake Michigan

On the Beach in Grand Haven, MI: January 15, 2011



Confessions of an Ice Watcher


As I walk out on the icy shoreline on a cold January day, the wind blows through my wool balaclava and my foot slips on glazed patches on the sand.


My leather gloves are not warm enough to keep the wind from freezing my fingers.


My long down coat though is keeping me warm enough to hike along the shoreline.



I pull my Canon (camera that is) out of my pocket. I didn’t want my camera to freeze. Ice fascinates me. My distant relative, Roald Amundsen was a polar explorer from the north of Norway who studied ice and figured out how to reach the South Pole with dog sleds. Maybe that explains my fascination. Maybe. Or it may be that the way the wind and waves change the ice patterns every day is the fascination. From my perch on the dunes, I watch.



In mid-February of 1979, four of the five Great Lakes froze all the way across. This was the first year this had happened in the recorded history of the National Weather Service. For years the harbor has not had fast ice where the Coast Guard Ice breaker had to try and break through.



I watch. I walk and I watch some more.  There is information about ice on the Great Lakes in the Dynamic Great Lakes.

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

Ice on Lake Michigan

I took this video January 9, 2010.  Read about how ice forms on the Great Lakes in my book, The Dynamic Great Lakes.

Ice on Lake Michigan

Ice is forming on the beaches of West Michigan.  It is beautiful but treacherous to walk on due to shifting winds and currents.

Read more about how ice forms on the Great Lakes in my book, The Dynamic Great Lakes.  It is available online and in fine bookstores everywhere.