Reflections of the Past

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Reflections of the Past

A calm winter afternoon along the historic Illinois and Michigan Canal about a mile east of Lemont, Illinois. The trails in this area of the National Heritage Corridor run between the canal and several water-filled quarries. It's quite remote here, and you can't help but feel as if you're miles away from civilization.

Several foot bridges (and even a log or two) allow you to cross the canal to walk along the towpath on either side.

Silo Sunset

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Silo Sunset

Driving home one evening, I spotted an abandoned farm I haven't come across yet. I stopped and checked out the farm, and when I turned to leave, I spotted this sky.

Icy Patterns

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Ice Patterns and Frost

A few feet from the base of a waterfall feeding the Illinois and Michigan Canal, I discovered some very interesting patterns below the top layer of ice. I'm guessing the action from the canal current and the waterfall produced these patches of white ice mixed with clear. Then a layer of clear ice formed over the top of both. The patterns remind me a bit of a dry lake bottom. I wonder if the ice began to melt, shrink and pull apart, then it froze again, or if the patterns are frozen foam from the waterfall.

However it happened, I found it quite interesting to view at sunrise.

Hidden Waterfall

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Limestone Waterfall

Along the Illinois and Michigan Canal just east of downtown Lemont, a small stream cascades down the limestone walls cut over a century ago by Irish, German and Swedish immigrants. This portion of the canal needed to be cut through solid limestone rather than just clay and soil, so the stream ended up becoming a waterfall that spills into the I and M Canal.

Most people who walk or bike the National Heritage path along the canal have never even noticed this waterfall. Because the towpath is about 10 feet above the surface of the water at this point, it can be passed right up. While it's not a huge waterfall, it's certainly not minuscule; at approximately 10 feet tall and 10 feet wide, it's impressive and makes quite a bit of noise.

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The Waterfall From Above (looking east)

Viewing the falls from the towpath is pretty easy, though it may be somewhat obscured by trees and shrubs in summer. Getting down the limestone walls of the canal isn't impossible if one is in prepared for a climb. Soil carried over the falls by the stream has created a small island in the center of the canal right in front of the waterfall. This is a great vantage point to see the waterfall as well as the canal from a unique perspective.

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Sunrise, From the Island in the Canal


This was taken early Sunday morning, about 20 minutes before sunrise. It's an HDR image, (High Dynamic Range) created out of three photographs taken at different exposures - one set for the shadows, one for the midtones, and one for the highlights. The images are merged together in Photoshop to create one image that is perfectly (I hope) exposed. A lot of HDR images are very odd looking, it seems that most people overdo it and the photos have a surreal look to them. I prefer an HDR image that is well exposed and not "painted."

Tree Skirts

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Ice Tree Skirts

A walk along the Illinois and Michigan Canal towpath east of Lemont, Illinois, yields some interesting historic and geologic features. Lemont sits directly on a vast limestone deposit, which, throughout it's history, was quarried for building material. Many of the local buildings, as well as the Chicago Water Tower, were made with stone quarried in Lemont. These abandoned quarries can be seen today, but have filled with water from underground springs. The towpath of the I and M Canal takes you right next to these quarries, now a haven for wildlife and fishermen.

A rare geologic feature is also present along the towpath, a limestone fen. A fen is a wetland (which is really common) but a natural limestone fen is rather rare. Mineral rich waters seep up through the limestone creating shallow ponds that support an interesting variety of plants and wildlife.

The image above was taken as the water in the limestone fen near the "Icebox Quarry" froze and began to drop in level. The ice remains attached to the tree, but since it's floating on the water, it drops with the water and creates interesting rings around things it touched.

Tiscornia Park

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Target Sighted

Another visit to the St. Joseph, Michigan lighthouse, this time from Tiscornia park just north of the lighthouse pier and the St. Joseph River. Warmer temperatures made this trip a lot more comfortable than the last.

The snow covered dunes were deceptive. Drifts were over three feet deep in places, and the snow was just firm enough to walk on, but every few steps we'd suddenly drop in past our knees!

Overcast

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Overcast

While wandering through the Joliet Iron Works ruins along the Illinois and Michigan Canal trail, the sky turned an interesting color. As we walked toward the evening sun, the trees appeared to be painted directly on the clouds.

37th Annual Ice Fishing Derby

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Ice fishing in Comfort

What a great day for an ice fishing derby! 48 degrees, sunny and still plenty of ice on the lake - no need for a shanty. This year's ice fishing derby had much better weather than previous years.

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Everyone Enjoyed the Derby

Swim at Your Own Risk

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No Lifeguard on Duty

What can I say?

Evening Sun

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Early Evening Sun

Driving home from St. Joseph, Michigan, I stopped by the Lake Michigan shore to view the lake from Shoreham, Michigan. The low angle of the sun created a beautiful glow in the snow, and great shadows as well.

Montrose Harbor

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Montrose Harbor, Chicago, IL

A cold, overcast afternoon doesn't necessarily mean that people will avoid the Chicago lakefront. I was spotted as I snapped this photo, by the person walking out onto the pier, and by several fishermen in the area. This part of the lake isn't frozen solid like the east shore, so fishermen can still enjoy themselves in February.

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Fishermen At Montrose Harbor

St. Joseph Lighthouse

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Outer Range Light

A winter visit to the St. Joseph, Michigan lighthouse is always interesting. The past few years have seen an increase in the ice out on Lake Michigan on the Indiana and Michigan shorelines - so much so, that for weeks this year, water could not be seen with the naked eye. A slight thaw in early February has turned some of the lake back into water.

A trek out past the inner range light was a bit hazardous, but well worth the trip. Judging by the footprints, I was the second person to venture out to the outer light in weeks. The ice and snow covered path was only about 14 inches wide, with the lighthouse base on one side, and the frozen lake eight feet below on the other side.

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Inner Range Light as Seen from the Outer Light.

The photo above shows the path from shore. It was certainly a glorious day to be out in nature.

Anatomy of a Snowflake

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Snowflake

I've been wanting to capture snowflakes for a while, and finally managed to rig up a system to allow me to bring snowflakes inside to photograph under hot lights. I can keep them frozen for about 5 minutes - usually enough time to photograph them.

They are truly amazing to view up close - and I've yet to see two of the same!

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These photos are not digitally zoomed in or cropped, so that is the actual image from the camera's sensor.

On Fire

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Sunset from Michigan City

On a clear day, you can see the Chicago Skyline from Michigan City, Indiana, and last weekend was no exception. If you look at the image above, between the lighthouse and the harbor beacon, you'll see some familiar buildings over 30 miles across frozen Lake Michigan.

The sky appeared to be on fire, but only near the horizon, as the sun set behind the lighthouse catwalk on this cold winter day.

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Vivid Winter Sky

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Michigan City, Indiana Lighthouse

Winter often provides lots of contrasts - colors, as well as objects. It still surprises me to see a lighthouse in a spot where water cannot be seen. Of course, the water is frozen here on Lake Michigan, but even standing on the top of the catwalk (don't tell anyone), I couldn't see water. I guess that's at least 4 miles off shore - solid flow ice.

The white ice provided a great contrast to the deep blue sky that surrounded the lighthouse, making it look a lot more like the arctic than the dunes.

You've got to be careful while walking out to this lighthouse; before the lake froze over, it splashed up onto the pier, creating a solid ice surface. I'm not sure if falling onto the flow ice would hold my weight or not, but I'm not going to test it!

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French Canyon Panoramic View

One of the more difficult canyons to navigate in the winter at Starved Rock State Park is French Canyon. It's also one of the closest to the lodge. A narrow approach leads you into the canyon, with steep drop offs on one side - not a place to walk when there's ice. Once you get to the bottom, the short hike to the canyon head is also slick - ice covered rock - basically the path is the shallow stream.

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Looking Up

While at the botton of the narrow canyon, you can't help but look toward the sky, and at the trees that hang over, preventing most of the sunlight from entering.

Certainly a canyon to explore in all seasons, but in winter, I think, it's the most dramatic.

It Only Looks Warm....

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An Outcropping of Rock
Starved Rock State Park

Even if you don't visit the Illinois River, the butte named Starved Rock, or any of the 16 canyons, there are still wonderful things to see while hiking through Starved Rock State Park.

The exposed rock and sunlight give a warm contrast to the cold, snowy winter landscape.

Two Weeks Later....

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Lake Falls Frozen

What a difference two weeks of cold weather makes! Lake Falls at Matthiessen State Park is totally frozen. If you look closely, you'll see lots of intricate detail in the ice, and if you're there in person, you can see the waterfall through the "ice tube" at the top of the falls.

Here's what the falls looked like two weeks ago:
http://lapstrake.blogspot.com/2009/01/lake-falls-matthiessen-state-park.html#links

Ice Falls

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Beneath Tonty Falls
Starved Rock

Each winter the many waterfalls located in the canyons of Starved Rock freeze solid, creating intricate ice sculptures. Some tower 80 feet in height and 30 feet in width, all are spectacular.

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Next to Tonty Falls

Visiting some of these canyons in winter will require a strenuous hike of 3 or more miles one way, in ice and snow along paths with long drops next to them - still it's worth the trip.

Waterfall Climbing

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Ice Climbers in Wildcat Canyon

The canyons at Starved Rock State Park are beautiful in any season, but winter transforms them into playgrounds for the adventurer. At the head of Wildcat Canyon is an 80 foot waterfall that freezes each winter. This is one of the many frozen waterfalls at Starved Rock that can be climbed.

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Ice Climbing Group

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Climber Nearing the Top

These climbers spent hours in the canyon preparing for and executing their climbs. The climber is secured to a harness that runs to the top of the falls and back down to two men handling the ropes in the event the climber falls. Once he made it to the top, he signaled and let go of the ice, he was then slowly lowered to the ground.