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After our family Easter was over on Sunday, we decided it was much too nice a day to go straight home. Yes, it was a bit gusty and rain was in the forecast for late evening but at the time it was sunny and around 70°F.
First we went out to the south pier on Lake Michigan. It was beautiful watching the waves crash upon the walkway. We made sure to stick to the middle of the walkway but we still ended up drenched from the spray. Luckily, I was wise enough to tuck the camera under my jacket when not in use. While out on the pier we spied these little waterfowl bobbing around in the waves. I imagine it was a rough swim but they seemed to be coping just fine. We finally made out to the end of the pier where beautiful photos of the lighthouse, on the north pier, can be taken. There was also a number of fishermen out. They said they were catching Coho Salmon: http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10364_18958-45666--,00.html. I hope they had some luck. Salmon sounds good to me.
Large freight boat in the channel.
Beach view with boat in the distance.
Waves on rocks.
Our area lighthouse
Horned Grebes
Water spray from the waves.
The lake looks much calmer from the bluff.
The second part of our adventure took us to a much smaller lake, almost a pond really. We headed to a local Rotary sponsored park one town over. Here we enjoyed lily pads just emerging from the watery depths. They almost looked like flags erupting from the surface of the water. We also saw a couple of pond critters. And we enjoyed splashing around in the much warmer waters. The kids also liked the park's playground equipment. As we headed back to the car it had started to get cooler and overcast. We had a good storm roll in but by that time we were nice and safe at home.
Playground
Lily pad flags
Checking out the water.
Family
Boys on a submerged stump.
Seaweed
Lone leaf floating on the pond.
Water striders. The one on the leaf had snagged a mosquito larva and dragged it up there to eat.
Some sort of lake isopod
Rain clouds in the distance.
~Jessica~
4 comments:
Jess, we always called those strange waterfowl 'mud ducks'. Not sure of what the actual name is, but, they dive down and pick through the muck at the bottom. Suckers are fast too!
Water has soothing effect most of the times. Looking at your photos is a real pleasure. It must be a real sand and shore adventure...... Cheers, ~bangchik
Beautiful photos Jessica. Could those birds be grebes?
Thanks for all the comments. Amy was correct. They are horned grebes. Thanks!
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