• Friday-What'sUP January 16 - 08:26 pm

Looking back at the last few days, the Pasty Cam has unofficially become a week of Lake Superior shoreline shots, so I couldn't resist just one more. Some say you can never get enough of the Big Lake, since she changes with each passing hour. But the most dramatic transformations happen from the summer/fall seasons to the winter/spring seasons. That's when the ice starts accumulating with each passing windstorm splashing more water upon the shoreline to freeze in various icy sculptures. This year has been a little different as Joyce Tormala's two shots show, with ice formed on the water's edge, yet sand still visible on the beach. I hope she was using a telephoto lens to capture that zoomed in shot of the wintry pyramid on the edge of the massive ice floe.

Thanks for the very nice pics!

Great winter pics.

Oooh, I wanna go explore those 'mountains'! Dangerous, yes, but oh, so fun! :)

Great pictures! I laughed when I saw the second one. I've been teaching the kids about volcanoes this week in my fourth grade class, and I'm sure they will get a kick out of the snow volcano. That's the only snow they will have seen here in southeast Michigan in a long time.

Where's this ice located? we have absolutely zero(mqt shores facing several directions) These pics show quite a buildup.very suprised!

Great pics. It is no wonder that it's called the Superior shoreline,it really is! I am not sure but it looks like that tree in the first pic is showing some early bud growth?

Shawn, I know the area that Joyce lives and my guess would be that she took these pictures on the Agate Beach/Misery Bay Lake Superior shoreline. I haven't been down there since early fall so I can't vouch for the ice banks. I guess I will put a trip to Agate Beach on my things to do this weekend list! Sure would beat doing laundry and housecleaning ;)

Good morning! Oh, those pics bring back fun memories. We have pictures of us kids surfing on ice blocks as the lake started to thaw in the Spring! Now that I have kids, I don't recommend it! I also have a pic of our youngest son on top of one of these icey formations on Keweenaw Bay, in the middle of Jan. I'll never forget that day. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, it was that crystal clear vibrant blue....the kind of blue not many places see. The temps were in the upper 30's, no wind! We pushed back some snow on the bank, built a little bon fire and roasted marshmellos! Then the boys took off their shirts(it really was warm in the sun and I guess the 8 year olds wanted a suntan!) and played around on the mounds of ice! The pictures were unreal as the topless boys with snowpants and boots on cast shadows on the white white snow, with the backdrop being the icebergs, the covered lake and the blue sky. Gorgeous!! Don't get too many days like that during the Winter! The formations are spectacular. I also remember the eerie sound in the Spring as the ice breaks up and for days it rolls in and out, it's the strangest sound.

The second pic reminds me of a Craig Blaylock print.

stix: Maybe you should scan your favorites of those pictures and put them in your gallery, if you have one. If not, it's time to make one!

Love the pics...makes me want to be there to experience Lake Superior personally. We do get some ice hill formations on Lake Michigan...but nothing you would want to venture out to take a 'look see' at, because of the shelf ice.
Stix, I love it when the ice breaks in the spring...and you can once again smell the water. You'll be out and about, and suddenly the air has that sweet smell of water to it ;)

I just passed this on the other day in "Whats UP" but here you go again:

"...go to this link for some truely awe-inspiring photos of the phenomenon know as "Ice Volcanoes". For a couple winters we studied/played on these volcanoes found in certain locations along the west shore of the Keweenaw where the depth, shoreline and wind orientation were ideal. McLains park is one of those places if you'd like to see them in person..."

http://www.geo.mtu.edu/volcanoes/ice/

Really nice pictures. I hope we can return this summer and skip the hurricane months down here!

Thank you! These pictures were taken on the 26th of December,at Agate Beach in Toivola. Most of the snow arrived before winter was officially here;days and days of relentless snow squalls.
I remember yelling,"Wow! If this is December, I wonder what January will be like!" We've had mild temps with very little snowfall and most of the banks have dropped into open water. Because the rivers are open,the snowmobilers have been unable to groom my beach ski trails.
I have heard many stories of close calls and have had a few of my own,while nosing around these formations. There are cracks hidden under thin layers of ice and it doesn't take much pressure to break through. I have been dumb enough to venture out there in late winter when the sun has more power,only to hear a loud,deep groan from somewhere beneath my feet. We don't know the thickness of the ice,or the length of the fracture,and it IS slippery. I am older and somewhat wiser,and I must admit,I am without an accomplice now,so I play it safe and stay on solid ground. Yes,I did zoom in on the ice banks. The clusters on the tree are stubborn dry leaves.
Winter isn't over yet,so there's plenty of time for the banks to return. Let's get out and enjoy the great outdoors!