Various Ramblings
Michael Nowak
Cha-cha-changes!
Cha-cha-changes!
Various Ramblings
Michael Nowak
Seeing can mean believing.
Seeing can mean believing.

sunrise

#ForestFriday - Up North Minnesota

I’ve got Minnesota on the brain right now because I’m planning my trek there for Labor Day weekend. I am so excited to get up there for a while (I took several days off) and it’s going to be good to see my people. I’m excited to see the forests and the big lake (Lake Superior) as well as the small lakes. I’m hoping for good weather, but will take anything we get. I’m ready for Leinenkugel's and bonfires. Superior National Forest makes up most of the woods around where I’ll be, so I’m sharing some photos from previous trips for this Forest Friday. I hope you get to the forest and have a great weekend!

Way Back Watery Wednesday

I have the Great Lakes on my brain, so I wanted to share some photos from around the glorious shorelines. When I lived in Michigan, I didn’t take advantage of the outdoors the way I would today. I can’t wait to get back and explore all of the things saved on my map. For now, enjoy some photos of the lakes that are unsalted and shark free!

Lake Superior

Lake Superior is pretty special. It’s large, moody, and definitely in charge. These photos are from Duluth throughout the years.

Lake Huron

Lake Huron is home, and the sky is often magical. Most of these are from the Rogers City area in Michigan.

Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan became home when I moved to the southwest corner of the state for college. Trips to the beach were memorable and fun. These photos are from all along that coast.

Thursday Thoughts

Feeling small under giant trees in the Hoh Rainforest - Olympic National Park

This week I was feeling small, but not in a bad way, and thinking about my existence in this world. I was feeling so small because I thought of myself, in my tiny apartment, in a single building, on a city block, on the city layout, and eventually zoomed out like I was looking down into my living room window from space. It is a feeling that washes over me on occasion, but more so lately since the world is so weird.

I usually get the “small” feeling when I’m standing beneath some trees - especially redwoods. When I’m on the shores of the Great Lakes or the Pacific Ocean, I also feel small and insignificant. I love the feeling - it grounds me. When people say water grounds them, this is what I assume they mean.

I think it’s important to find the “thing” that makes you feel this way. I like to use these moments to contemplate everything in life from my purpose to how everything interacts out there. My thoughts drift through all the beautiful places I’ve seen and the ones I have yet to see.

Big trees, big lakes, oceans, sand dunes… They keep putting me in place and bringing me back to reality while simultaneously fueling my hopes and dreams. What is something like this that keeps you going?

Me feeling small at Delicate Arch - Arches National Park - Moab, UT

Feeling small standing alongside Lake Superior - Duluth, MN

Thursday Thoughts

I remember one of my favorite point and shoot cameras of all time - my Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX3. The camera was 6 megapixels and 3x optical zoom. This point and shoot was lovely, until it glitched one time. BUT, before that, it felt like it was the best damn thing. It had a special long exposure mode called Starry Sky - up to a minute - and I would go around taking night photos for shit and giggles. I love setting the camera down and seeing what it can do when it brings in all the light.

I actually shared a little about this once here: GVSU Overexposed

Nowadays, I have an iPhone 14 Pro Max with night mode and a Google Pixel 7a with Google’s famous night mode. I love taking night photos or long exposure photos. I have a DSLR I need to learn how to use - would love to start taking pictures of the night sky.

Looking back to find photos for this post, I’m thinking about life before good camera phones. I have so many weird selfies and mirror selfies as well as just hundreds of useless photos. Nothing has changed, except I probably have thousands of useless photos now. It’s fun to sit here and look back life before camera phones. I would take my little Panasonic Lumix everywhere with me - I think I eventually just kept it in the center console of my car.

I love that I have a super camera with machine learning/AI in my pocket now. I can take photos to remember everything. I’m a huge fan of sharing life with everyone, an early adopter of social media before it was monetized. I love sharing what it looks like for me, real life, lightly adjusted if necessary to look as real to my eye.

Here are some photos from my Panasonic point and shoot over the years. Go do what makes you happy and take pictures of everything.

#WBW - My first visit to Mt. Rainier

Back in October 2018, I visited Mt. Rainier (Tahoma) for the first time. I met a friend though a Twitter chat and he agreed to show me the mountain. I met up with him, we drove out towards the park and saw the mountain at sunset. From there, we camped nearby so we could get into the park early the next day to watch the sunrise over the peak but not before visiting the park at dark. I’ll never forget the magical sights from this trip. Enjoy some photos - and if you’re going, try to see it in different lights!

My first, up-close view that wasn’t from the freeway (at sunset, nonetheless)

The view of the summit at night, glowing in the moonlight

Just before the sun rose

First light on the summit

THE GLOW of the sunrise is hitting the sky

Full daylight - the mountain reflecting

And a bonus, of me in the sunset glow

#ForestFriday - Mt. Walker Viewpoint

One of my favorite places to go take a break, take a guest, or just stop for a minute is the Mt. Walker Viewpoint in the Olympic National Forest. It was suggested by a friend a while ago, and I’ve gone there for years.

The road up to the viewpoints is a winding, dirt road that pushes through the forest. I recently visited early in the morning to catch the sunrise, and it was spectacular to come around the corners and see the sun rising. VIDEO HERE.

Most of the time you can see Mt. Rainier in the distance from the Southern Viewpoint and sometimes you can see Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Adams. From the Southern Viewpoint, you can see the Olympics and Mt. Baker.

Enjoy some photos from over the years.

My Hiatus from Texas

On June 14 I started my drive to Michigan after work and a nap. I had the opportunity to work remotely, from my family’s house, way up north. The whole experience was set up so I could visit my grandmother and other family as much as possible for two weeks during a pleasant time of year in Michigan.

As the two week window came to a close, I learned that working remotely is quite possibly the best thing ever. I managed to stay busy and spend so much time with my family all in the same day, what a dream. I was able to exercise before and after work daily, kayak often, have lunch with best friends, and take long walks on the weekends. It is safe to say that I am not enjoying my home atmosphere nearly as much as the Michigan one. I am back to the grind - commuting, avoiding the outdoors due to heat and concrete, and wishing I was somewhere cooler.

Currently, it is a “real feel” temperature near 100 and too hot to ethically walk my dog on the expansive concrete around us. I’m looking through the photos from my time up north and thought I’d share some highlights to keep the spirit alive. I’ll be back for a visit, Michigan, sometime this year again.


Some sunrises…

And, some sunsets…

But, also, these…

#WayBackWednesday - Cool at the Canyon

WBW 9-12.jpg

This is going to have to be a quick post, but it’s my website so I can do whatever I want. This week has been busy, but let’s throw it back to March of 2015 at the Grand Canyon. My other half and our best friend Nikki set out on a road trip (which will be featured eventually - it’s a work in progress) to see the Grand Canyon, Vegas, and Zion. Here are a few photos from the South Rim on that cool March morning.

#WayBackWednesday - Palo Duro Canyon State Park

Camping in Palo Duro Canyon State Park was a highlight from spring of 2017.  Looking back through my photos, I didn't even capture the immense beauty of the canyon but sure did get some great shots from our hikes and our campsite.  If you get the chance, it's one of the most beautiful places in Texas and is worth a visit!  This place was Hike #6 of my 2017 52 Hike Challenge and you can read more about the adventure and see more photos HERE.

I'll always be a sunrise guy

“There’s nothing like being on a road trip, driving through the night, and seeing that first sliver of light ahead. As you travel further along, the sky opens up and you’re rejuvenated like the cycle of light you’re chasing.”

For years, I'd stay up all night and sleep through the sunrises not waking until the sun was at a high noon.  It wasn't until back in college when we started doing road trips through the night that I started to appreciate the sunrise.  I've always had trouble sleeping, so staying up all night was never a problem; I always went to bed as the moon began to set.  Driving all night - be it around Lake Michigan for no reason at all, from Michigan to Seattle (a few nights), or anywhere else we went - allowed me to be awake for the sunrise.

I can remember back to sometime my sophomore year of college, or so, that we did a winter road trip circumnavigating Lake Michigan.  We left Grand Rapids, MI and headed south towards Chicago and up through Milwaukee.  The best part, on each occasion this trip happened, was Michigan's Upper Peninsula.  Up there, I remember seeing the best sunrises.  We did the trip three different years, but the first trip was when I realized I'd forever be a sunrise guy.  Below are three photos of the frigid winter sunrise from Michigan's Upper Peninsula from the early 2000s.

In 2007 my buddies and I started doing these spring break road trips that allowed us to see as much as possible in the least amount of time.  Between the three of us, no one had crossed the Mississippi as an adult nor had we experienced the Rocky Mountains (or any mountains) in person.  This road trip involved many stops but I can still remember that moment when the sun would barely peek over the horizon.  That sliver of a sunrise signaled a new day and regenerated me every time.  I tried to find some photos from the various road trips, but most are blurry or through a dirty windshield.  Take a road trip, drive through the night, and let me know how that first sliver of light makes you feel.

As the years went by, road trip sunrises quickly became one of my favorite things.  If you catch a desert sunrise, road trip or not, it's probably going to be one of the best things you see.  Another favorite sunrise of mine was in 2011 at the Grand Canyon North Rim in October, right before they closed for the season.  This was not only my first Grand Canyon sunrise, it was my first time seeing the Grand Canyon in person.  What a way to be introduced to the place - as it wakes up.

On my most recent trip, to Minnesota, I woke up just in time to see the sun rising over Lake Superior.  Everyone was asleep, even the dog, so I quickly got dressed and crept outside to watch the sun come up.  I walked from the house, through the pines, and ended on the beach.  I could hear the ice moving, see the fog over the city behind me, and see a couple of dogs being walked down the way.  It was an amazing moment in time, to stop and take it all in.

Sunrises may be my favorite, but don't think I wont whip out a camera or phone to capture the sunset just as often.  Every beginning has an end and both are beautiful.

 

 

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