Looking to get away from it all?  Michigan's north country is an ideal place.  For a nature photographer Michigan's upper peninsula offers a great variety of subjects.  The unique geology of the region offers many interesting photo opportunities in the form of landscapes, waterfalls and sunsets / sun rises over Lake Superior.  The area is also rich in mineral deposits and was a major mining center in the 19th century. Ruins of the bygone mining industry abound.  And though the photos in this gallery focus on landscapes, wildlife opportunities are also abundant.  Not only are whitetail deer omnipresent (as with the rest of the state) but black bears, gray wolves, and bald eagles prowl the remote corners of the northern forests.

In June last summer, my wife Pam and I decided to head to the great north for a short vacation.  Our destination: Skanee, population 310.  Located about 400 miles due north of Chicago, Skanee sits in the heart of some of the most beautiful (and remote) of Michigan's north country.

The area surrounding Skanee is largely forest, much of which is actively logged.  There are also several small creeks which feature  waterfalls and rock strewn rapids. The Huron and Porcupine 'mountains' are also close by - though they are more hills than true mountains. 

While in Skanee we stayed at the Aurora Borealis Resort, a very comfortable group of cottages on the shore of the Huron Bay.  The accommodations were first rate, and the whimsical wood carvings and beautiful gardens that covered the grounds made the stay all the more enjoyable.  And though we had to wait till almost 10 PM to watch them, the sunsets over Huron Bay were phenomenal.

Weather in northern Michigan, like the weather in the rest of the state, is volatile. Upon arriving in Skanee we were treated to record high temperatures, with unofficial highs of 105 and 107 in the nearby towns of L'Anse and Houghton -- very uncharacteristic for places that can log over 300 inches of snow a year!  A few days later a cold front pushed in and brought not only more typical, cooler weather, but also a heavy fog that hung around the lake but dissipated a few miles inland.

Armed with a snow mobile trail map, we drove along some of the back roads, often with the windows down, listening for water falls. Waterfall photography proved to be very challenging. The tonal range between the white water and often black (or charcoal gray) rocks can exceed the latitude of most films, and I'm far from satisfied with most of the waterfall shots taken during this trip.  We also visited some of the mines, or at least sites of former mines, and several other interesting sites along the way. 

I hope you enjoy these photos and maybe someday have the chance to see Michigan's UP first hand.