• Wednesday-What'sUP March 17 - 08:09 pm

Looking at this view, taken by Jamie Harter, it seems like Great Sand Bay needs to have a name change, at least for the winter months. Since all that beautiful sand is covered by snow and ice, maybe Great Ice Bay would be a better handle. It surely is a better description of what you're seeing, but it doesn't matter when you look out over the Bay, if you see sand or ice, it's still an awesome sight to behold. Hard to imagine under all that white is beautiful beach sand, which we'll be seeing in just a month or two!

Very pleasent picture. Wish it was 50 degrees warmer.

Beautiful picture - one of my favorite spots!

You can almost feel the wind coming off the lake looking at pictures like this one. Thanks to all you shutter bugs for providing us with a daily vision.

This is the first time I have left a message, but I have been visiting the site daily for a few months now. My love for Lake Superior comes from many years spent camping at Little Girls Point in Ironwood. My dad was born and raised there. We have camped by it's shores since 1965. My children and now my grandchildren love it as much as I do. It is wonderful to be able to see the sites of the UP and The Lake. Thanks for the website.

One of my favorite spots too, (on the 4th of July)

I love this site because it is a daily reminder of what we truly have here in God's country: the spectacular beauty, the wonderful people, the small-town values, etc., etc. I love it!
Thank you.

I don't think I could make it through the day living in Troll Land without this wonderful daily FIX of home. Thank you for making my days so much brighter!

Here is another shot of Great "ICE" Bay looking the other direction with the spires from the monastery presenting a new addition to our coastal scenery.

Dave, the picture is beautiful. (As usual)

Lake Superior has a special beauty. All the Great Lakes are beautiful, but when you look at Lake Superior it is different. My daughter married a lighthouse keeper and lives in the lighthouse at 40 Mile Point on Lake Huron. It too is beautiful. But it just doesn't have what Lake Superior does.

Thanks for the pictures...have a wonderful day everyone!

Heinasirkka, heinasirkka, mene taalta hiiteen!~
Happy St. Urho's Day

Such beautiful pictures. This site inspires me every day. Thanks for the morning pick me up, for those of us that don't drink coffee:-)

Dave, is that the monastary across from the Jam Pot between Eagle Harbor and Copper Harbor?

What a clean and tranquil place! No wonder lots of people like the UP.

CJ in MN: yes, it is the monastery across from the Jam Pot, which the monks operate.

Agate picking country.

CJ in MN.. Yes, but it is between Eagle River and Eagle Harbor, just past Jacob's Falls as you head north, which is almost east actually up in that area.

Three questions...

1. St. Urho's day... is it tradition to wear purple?
2. Whats the story behind St. Urho?
2. What is the "tide" on Lake Superior at its maximum? 1-2 inches?

JKal

Jeff Kal.. go to the 'What's Up' page for your answers....

Another great shot Dave!

This Bay has wonderful sunset views! We in
the Keweenaw are lucky to have FREE public
beaches like Great Sand Bay. We live on
Sedar Bay in the summer. Maybe one of you
photo bugs have a photo of it to show us here
in New MExico?!?

Loved the pictures of the Great Sand Bay. I always tell everyone how beautiful the Keweenaw Peninsula is. Can't wait to visit again this summer. Thanks for all you do to make our days a lot brighter.

Jef Kal -- see the What'sUp site.

many times my family and I sat on that beach eating baked goods from the "Jampot" and chill'n out we love it!

Your Site and pictures are great, Thanks.

How about a winter picture of Gratiot Lake?

Dave,

Beautiful pic. What kind of camera/lens do you use...your pic is so crisp and clear.

Nikon CoolPix 8800.....

As far as having FREE beaches in Keweenaw County, it seems there is now a "Private Property" sign at 5-Mile Point beach...sheesh

It's just a hop and a skip from the fellow who built the big house above 5-mile point road who has the night lights that resemble a small airport landing strip...

Keweenaw is still MOSTLY wild, but the encroachment is evident.

I remember when Sedar Bay was a "free beach", not anymore.

What IS the average tide shift from low to high tides on Superior?

CHARLIE! Mary told me you did the map for yesterdays pic.... can you tell me where I can go on the web to get it? It's a fabulous map! Thanks, Pam

We used to go to 5 Mile Point beach a lot when we were kids, lots of great memories picking agates and wading in the water. Sure made me sad when I saw the signs up this summer. People buy a little piece of our beautiful copper country and immediately put up those ugly signs. Maybe we shouldn't be advertising how beautiful our area really is, and it will stay the same.

Thanks Dave,

Wow, and here I thought I would never like a digital camera. This camera has a pixel resolution of 235,000...WOW!

With that picture on Great Sand Bay, How far out is the lake frozen? Just where you see the white?

Our rights to walk on the beachs here on the great lakes in Michigan just went to the MICHIGAN SUPREME COURT last week. People have been placing signs also on Lake Huron re no walking on "my beach". The case is expected to be finalized by June. There have been many articles lately in the Free Press.

Hello to all!
I just look webcamera in HOUGHTON - there VERY beautiful weather! Sun and spring.. .

Beaches are public property here in CA, but access to them is not guaranteed. Even if the court decides to allow public use, I don't know how they will handle cases where the only access may be via private property. I love boats, maybe I'll come back and start a beach taxi! :)

Hello from Mishawaka IN. Beautiful pictures today. Thanks to Jamie and Dave.

Beautiful--love it, love it. Back from camping.

AHHH! G.S.B. My favorite place to spend a day searching for the elusive,perfect agate.

Riparian rights are always a touchy subject. I suspect that those who own land on a lake paid a relatively higher price for it, acre for acre, than non-lakeshore land. I also supect that they get the right to pay higher property taxes due to the relatively higher evaluation, acre for acre. For these reasons (and a few more), those who own land with lakeshore resent the notion that the land that they paid for, and continue to pay for via taxes, should be deemed to be "for the public." Court rulings have varied from state to state, but in Michigan, it has been generally accepted that a lake with a public access is open to the public for recreational purposes, but that right extends only to the "ordinary high water mark" and not beyond. In other words, you can walk the beach if you are in the water, but you are probably trespassing if you walk out of the water onto dry land. Furthermore, riparians can erect docks and other such structures along their lakeshore, and it, too, is considered an extension of their land which cannot be trespassed legally. This applies to Michigan's inland lakes; the Great Lakes and other "navigable" waters are a different matter since they fall under the jurisdiction of other authorities like the Coast Gaurd, et. al.

An excellent website for a variety of interesting stuff regardign Michigan lakes is www.inland-lakes.com. Check out the monthly newsletter archive, it's very interesting to those who love their lakes.

Dave, wonderful picture!!!

oooh boy, the beach rights issue was decided last year in Mich.
Private property now has rights to the water line. I think Sheriff
Lahti had the right idea a couple years ago when he felt that 5'
from the waters edge was reasonable so that beach walkers
could do their thing. The private signs went up where there used
to be " Public Access " In the last 50+ years that I have been at
5 Mile Point in the summer at our camp I have never felt
pressured by public visitors, even campers (as much as 5 tents).
There is the issue of never an outhouse, so there was the
occsional "brown flower". The property owners now do co-own
the previous public access. high water mark is a big ?

I just know there is a agate under all of
that someplace. But last time I was there
I couldn't find one if my life depended on it...

What is strange is that many people from Downstate
Michigan have never heard of agates. I thought
everyone knew what they were. Everytime I go up
to visit I bring a few back and try to explain to
others what they are and what they look like.

Jim wrote:

" oooh boy, the beach rights issue was decided last year in Mich. Private property now has rights to the water line. "

The Case is in Michigan Supreme Court now: Click for Link

Thad is right.......that issue is still unresolved.....It will be resolved shortly....(in the law shortly is about two years)
Flyin.....but a lawyer since 1981...........

I never find agates at Sand Bay?
What is wrong with me?

As for property rights, try fishing in Wisconsin
on a lake without a boat! Hardly a unprivate
spot to just walk on the shoreline. I've run
into this time and time again.

Everything is posted......

You have to almost be in a National Park
to find a lake that you can fish.

Are there more agates in the water then
on the shore?

Later

Scott

Scott,Wis...Probably more agates in the water on
the shoreline than on the shore. Ocassionally one
gets washed upon the shore. They are easier to
find in the water since they are wet and easier to
spot.

This is late, as I was off-line yesterday, but, about beach rights: At our place on Lake Huron, the custom is that anyone can walk past, on the "lower beach" (ie, don't go up into someone's yard) & even beachcomb; the Big Lake uncovers new stones all the time, plenty for all. What is not done is to sit down, picnic, set up a beach chair or otherwise use that beach that someone else is indeed paying high property taxes on. Because the only access is by other homeowners, we respect those unwritten rules. I wouldn't like some court to declare walking illegal, but I also wouldn't like a miniature State Park in front of my cabin.

This picture looks like it was taken off the Hill in L'Anse looking down at Lake Superior. I dont know if it was but If it was could you tell me.

This shot was actually taken along M-26 in the Keweenaw, it's an area called Great Sand Bay.

My opinion:

The beautiful places in our great country are increasingly becoming the private domains of the wealthy for their personal enjoyment, locked away whether the owners are present or not. Often, these beautiful places are owned as investment property, and aren't even enjoyed by anyone at all. Prime coastal acreage is being bought up and turned into private, gated resorts for the wealthy, and now they want to fence off the beach. This is wrong. Wealthy folks, who can afford to buy out beachfront property and pay the high taxes also get the full-time privileges of enjoying the ambiance, the view and the sound of the crashing surf whenever they desire it. That's what they paid for. If the narrow strip of beach is fenced off from the rest of us, then we never get the chance to enjoy the same beauty, even though the Founding Fathers supposedly guaranteed that in our country, "All men are created equal with unalienable rights." In this spirit, the national parks system was formed over a hundred years ago, to stop the privitization and commercial exploitation of our best natural treasures. That's the America I believe in, where the common man has a chance to experience and see the best places.

The best places in our land should not be locked away for only the wealthy to enjoy. And that includes the narrow strip of beach on our coastlines, whether they are the Great Lakes or our salt water beaches.