A Walk on the Shore

Saturday morning I took a walk along the little trail that runs along the shore in front of Mission Point Resort. When I got down there the water was calm, but within a half hour the winds were whipping and whitecaps appeared on Lake Huron. It was a cold morning, but really lovely.

Though Mackinac Island is largely populated with cedars, which don't change color in the fall, there are also deciduous trees and shrubs that have already started their show. Many of these are stunted by the shore where fierce winds force them to brace themselves.

Most wildflowers this far north have already gone to seed (like these puffy cream colored goldenrods) but the asters are in full bloom (they're the purple flowers). I saw a number of different varieties on this trip, all beautiful.

In this sheltered little inlet before the wind picked up you could see how clear and clean this water is.

And when the waves started to come in, crashing against the rocks, you can see why the Great Lakes are not like other lakes. They can be treacherous and there are many, many shipwrecks to be found in each of them, including more than a dozen rather large ones all along the Straits of Mackinac.

This feather was holding on to that stick for dear life as the wind whipped it around.

I've said before that the places where water and land meet are my very favorite places. They make for dynamic, interesting land formations and are a host to a special niche of flora and fauna. If there is one thing that Lansing (the capital city of Michigan, where I live) is missing it's water. We've got a couple decent rivers (the Grand River and the Red Cedar River) and a couple dinky lakes, but nothing on the scale of some other areas of the state. Oh well. You can't have it all. I guess it just makes those visits to watery places even more special.