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Dead trees buried by shifting sand stand out on the Silver Lake sand dunes. The trees look as if they could be a slalom course set up for the off-road vehicles that race up and down this portion of the Silver Lake State Park.

Whenever I see acorns on the ground it reminds me of the acorn fights I used to get in with my two brothers Tad and Willie and my cousin Ryan. We would spend a few minutes gathering our arsenals, stuffing our pockets with as many acorns as possible. Then the acorn-throwing war was on. Oh, to be a kid again.

Summer Bliss

Master of My Fate

State Park Beauty

Take Me Away

Out of Hand

The Three Amigos

My son, Brad and I were looking for fresh views of the Silver Lake sand dunes on an August evening. I found this perspective, near the north end of the dunes, in a privately owned area undisturbed by tracks made by vehicles or people.

Staring down a large toad "eye to eye" on the Island Trail at the Ludington State Park was a hoot. I love getting close to my subject and truly enjoy the challenge of trying to show nature from its own perspective. As most fairytale princesses would agree, toads are not creatures of great beauty. However, when you get close enough to a toad that the end of your lens is touching its nose, you realize that toads do have an amazing beauty all their own.

Tranquil Beauty

At the northern end of the Silver Lake sand dunes is a section of private dunes that I am privileged to wander. Many of the pieces of driftwood, polished by sand, water, and time, remain undisturbed on these dunes.

Summer is Near - panoramic

Being on the Silver Lake sand dunes on a warm summer evening feels so good. I wonder why I am not here more often. My wife, sons, and I go away talking about coming back soon. Yet, I know soon will probably not be as soon as we think.

Summer is Near

The Second Show

While my son, Tad, explored sand dunes farther inland, I took up position on top of a dune overlooking Hamlin Lake and composed a view across Lower Hamlin Lake through the Narrows leading to Upper Hamlin Lake. Then, I sat in the sand and savored the view while waiting for the exquisite light the evening graciously delivered.

After stopping in Walkerville to get some breakfast, I continued east on my journey to Legends Ranch in Bitely, Michigan. A few minutes outside of Walkerville, I drove into heavy fog. The fog got so thick that I had to slow down and drive less than 10 miles per hour. When I rounded a bend, I was awe struck to see the sun shining through the top of a huge tree. The intense sunlight and dense fog was a photographer's dream!

Tinley's Glow

Sometimes you get to see something in nature so heartwarming it gives you a feeling of euphoria. This rare piping plover chick and two of its siblings had flown the coop and were missing in action. Well actually, the rare chicks couldn’t fly yet so they hopped away with their parents from the shelter erected by humans to protect the endangered species from predators and human footsteps. They hopped so far from their dune valley nest site that it was a couple hours before we spotted them by a pond over the next dune ridge. We were greatly relieved they were all alive and well. Being able to capture this parenting moment added to the euphoria.