The Labor Day weekend often signals the end of summer and there are signs that autumn is starting to make its appearance.
Fall Color Starting
Picture of the Day for September 9, 2021
A group of of a dozen Trumpeter Swans were enjoying some sunshine on a small lake. With a wingspan of 6 to 8 feet, they are our largest native waterfowl and heaviest flying bird. That size requires 100 yards of open water runway to get airborne.
Swans in Sunshine
Picture of the Day for September 8, 2021
Although the day started out sunny, clouds rolled in waves with brief periods of rain and then the sun would return. But soon more clouds and rain appeared for a few minutes with the sun shining before the rain finished. The cycle continued several more times, but other than keeping the grass wet so I couldn’t mow, the total rain was less than a tenth of an inch.
Brief Rain Clouds
Picture of the Day for September 7, 2021
Sometimes it is hard to go back to work on the Tuesday following a long holiday weekend, but this old tractor might have a very tough time returning to work and might have to extend its holiday.
Tractor on Holiday
Picture of the Day for September 6, 2021
As the holiday long weekend nears its end, some sailboats are getting a little more time on Lake Superior’s water.
Superior Sailing
Picture of the Day for September 5, 2021
Fishing is one of the outdoor activities some people will be enjoying this holiday weekend, especially on a nice early autumn day. While a lot of Lake Superior fishing is done from boats, there is some fishing from shore too.
Lake Superior Fishing
Picture of the Day for September 4, 2021
The holiday weekend has people enjoying some outdoor activities, including taking a boat out on Lake Michigan past the Kewaunee Pierhead Lighthouse. A pair of range lights were installed in 1891 and changes to the lights happen through the years. The present square lighthouse on the south pier was built in 1931 with a fifth-order Fresnel lens.
Kewaunee Pierhead Lighthouse
Picture of the Day for September 3, 2021
This waterfront used to be the lumber port of Newport. In 1881, a large wooden pier was built and a small town grow up around it and for the 40 years sailing vessels and barges hauled lumber from the nearby forest. When the forest thinned, the town disappeared with very little evidence of its existence.
The area is now Newport State Park with 11 miles of undeveloped Lake Michigan shoreline and is a special dark in that it received the International Dark Sky Park designation – the 49th in the world. A place to view the stars and meteor showers in the absence of artificial light.
A Dark Sky Park
Picture of the Day for September 2, 2021
This stretch of road at the tip of Door County is frequently photographed, especially in the autumn when the leaves turn color. The design of the fifteen curves are said to have been influenced by the works of architect Jens Jenson, who early in his career design what he called the ideal highway which would slow traffic and keep nature always in view.
Curvy Road
Picture of the Day for September 1, 2021
Some of the area schools started last Wednesday and others started today, but the school the children went to this week probably didn’t look like this one. The Pioneer Schoolhouse was built in 1880 after Ephraim’s first log school in Door County became too small. In 1900, an addition doubled the size to accommodate 80 students and the tall windows allowed more natural light inside. After the school closed in 1949, the Ephraim Historical Foundation preserved the schoolhouse as a museum.
The Pioneer Schoolhouse Museum
