upper peninsula

OK, you’re just going to have to indulge me with this post. This was SO MUCH FUN!

It all began innocently enough at our local brewery (shout-out to Witch’s Hat) while I was scrolling through my email and came across one from MiniUSA. No, I guess it really began last October when I traded in my first Mini Cooper for my second Mini Cooper and ended up on the company email list. Anyway, I got an email about this event called Mini on the Mack, an attempt to break the world record for the most Mini Coopers in parade formation, crossing Michigan’s own Mackinac Bridge.

By the time I received the email, the event was just a week away. I looked up and asked Justin if he wanted to do it. He did. So I sat there, sipped my beer, registered my Mini for the event, and booked us a hotel in Mackinaw City for the following weekend.

One week later, we found ourselves in St. Ignace in the Upper Peninsula in a huge line of Minis, all on our way to the rally. It was the friendliest and funnest traffic I’ve ever been stuck in!

Justin hopped out and grabbed a shot of the line. My Mini is the fifth one from the right.

Minis traveled from 32 states and three provinces to participate, and we all eagerly awaited the call to start our engines.

When they announced it was time to go, we all hopped in and hit our horns. I had that goofy grin pasted on my face all day!

As late arrivers, we waited a whole hour before it was our turn to take off, but we had a blast watching the parade of Minis go by!

Finally, it was our turn! I let Justin take over as driver so I could get some shots with my DSLR, and wave to all the people watching the parade from the roadside.

The course called for us to cross the Mackinac Bridge twice, so we encountered some other Minis on the way. I got a huge kick out of seeing some original Minis cruising along with the modern Minis! When we arrived back in St. Ignace, a checkered flag waved us into a “Minis Only” lane at the toll booth.

We parked again to await the announcement of the official count. There were hundreds and hundreds of Minis, and they all were unique!

Everyone listened anxiously to learn if we had set a new world record. But alas, they broke our collective hearts when they told us we didn’t break the record.

The official count for Mini on the Mack 2017 was 1,328, well short of the world record of 1,450.

While I was disappointed that we didn’t break the record, I recovered quickly when they announced that we’d have another chance in two years. So, Mini on the Mack, see you in 2019!

Our trip Up North for my birthday this year was all about sunsets and stars, starting with an overcast sunset over Lake Superior in Marquette.

The next day, we hiked some muddy trails in the Porcupine Mountains. Afterwards, we were filthy and sore everywhere, but a refreshing dip in Lake Superior (which, I’m pretty sure, was still thawing from the winter’s freeze) made everything all better.

Milky Way photography has gotten really trendy lately. I’m usually indifferent to trends of any kind, but this one caught my attention. I had been wanting to give it a try for a while, but the thing about Milky Way photography is you need a really dark place to do it. Your backyard isn’t dark enough (but if it’s any consolation, I live on 17 acres and my backyard isn’t dark enough either).

With small towns, low populations and minimal light pollution, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan is pretty much an ideal location to attempt Milky Way. So I set up my tripod at the Lake of the Clouds overlook in the Porcupine Mountains and had one of the most amazing experiences I’ve ever had as a photographer.

The following shots are my first series in what I know will be a lifelong love with Milky Way photography. Armed only with the knowledge of which F stop, ISO, and shutter speed to shoot at, I pointed my lens at the sky and hoped for the best.

With every flip of the mirror, I held my breath for the entire 30 seconds that my DSLR’s sensor was exposed, terrified that if I breathed, the tripod would move and blur my image. When I heard the mirror flip back down, I exhaled and gazed in absolute wonder at the back of my camera.

Maybe it was just because my brain was deprived of oxygen from holding my breath for so long, but I got positively giddy after every shot. Instead of a person or a landscape as my subject, I had an entire galaxy. I was interacting with a galaxy! It just blew my mind.

Behold: the Milky Way!