• Friday-What'sUP March 18 - 10:48 pm

Brenda Leigh has to drive by this spot, when she heads to town, in Menominee. So one day last week, as she was driving by the Menominee North Pier Lighthouse, she spotted something a little ways out on the ice. Grabbing her camera and lens, she zoomed in on the object only to see that it was two bald eagles, just sitting there, facing into what was a brisk wind that day. Brenda said she thought it was a bit weird for them to be there like that, since there wasn't any open water to be looking for fish and obviously there was no road kill out there on the ice to be feasting on. So it's a bit puzzling as to what they were doing there, unless they were just enjoying the wind ruffling their feathers, on a cold, windy Lake Michigan morning.

Good Morning! Spring is just around the corner. :-)

Good lighthouse photo.

Wow, what a beautiful siight. Not the light house, the two eagles.

Great lighthouse picture, but love the eagles!

They are a couple of old birds swapping recipes.

How cool is that! Would've loved to catch that sight!

The lighthouse will be of use soon as the great lakes shipping season is upon us.

The James R. Barker departed Duluth from SMET late Thursday afternoon with 58,000 tons of low sulfur coal for Presque Isle in Marquette, MI, opening up the new shipping season. The Barker will reach Marquette Friday afternoon, unload and be back at SMET by Sunday. On Monday she'll depart for MN Power at Tac Harbor, unload coal there and be back at SMET on Wednesday. She'll then load for a trip to the Lower Lakes as the Locks open on the 25th.

Port Reports - March 18

Escanaba, Mich. - Rod Burdick
Thursday afternoon at the CN ore dock, Joseph L. Block loaded on the north side while Philip R. Clarke waited on the south side. At Basic Marine, Tug Victory was secured inside a floating drydock.

Alpena, Mich. – Dan McNeil
Alpena is expected to load in her name sake port late on Friday.

Okay, Mary, the eagles are nice, 2.

Eddyfitz...thanks for the shipping report. It is great to hear that the freighters are moving again.

Thanks Eddyfitz, for the shipping report. At this time of year I start to go a little crazy waiting to see a lake boat after a winter of looking at ice rubble and nothing happening out on Lake Michigan. Usually I have to wait until a while after the Sault Locks open. I wanted to kick myself for missing the Alpena leave winter layup in Muskegon on March 12. I was home that day and just wasn't looking. I did see a boat out on the lake on the eve of March 7, probably the R/V Laurentian operated by the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. Also saw a tug with a barge on a towline on March 15. So things are starting to wake up out there! I never get tired of watching the boats.

We have a chipmunk that comes out and just looks over the pile of snow on the other side of the driveway. It looks as if he is seeing if it is ok to come out yet. Bill snapped a couple of pictures and the one picture the chipmunk looks so fat and chubby, it is hard to believe it is a chipmunk. It is cute to just see him or her looking over the pile of snow.

Eddyfitz: What is SMET? Excuse my ignorance, but I'm trying to figure it out with no success. Thanks for your input!

I'm not Eddie, but I know what SMET is, Superior Midwest Energy Terminal