lake michigan circle tour, day 2, G12 and the ferry

 

Up and out to catch the 9AM ferry to Mackinac Island. It was suggested that we take the Shepler Ferry Line. Apparently they are the fastest and the 9AM ferry takes you under the 5 mile Mackinac Bridge that will later in the day take us from St. Ignace to  lower Michigan.

Two years ago I got my Canon G12 camera that I like a lot. Apparently it is the point and shoot that the pros use. I think I am a better than average photographer because I have a fairly good eye. I do shoot almost all my shots with my iPhone because I always have it with me. But I know I could take some really good photos if I would just take the time to learn my camera. And my buddy Phil had just showed me the Color Mode feature on this camera. You choose one color on the LCD and all the other colors in the image are converted to black-and-white.

I knew the harbor would be a great place to try out this new trick.

As you can see I first selected and shot to get red and then switched to blue. I am happy to have learned this new technique. Now if I would just read my whole camera book....

And here is a shot John took as we went under the Mackinac Bridge. We could only drive 20 mph over the bridge. Below is more info about the bridge from the Mackinac Bridge Authority.

The Mackinac Bridge is currently the fifth longest suspension bridge in the world. 

The width of the roadway is 54 feet. The outside lanes are 12 feet wide (2), the inside lanes are 11 feet wide (2), the center mall is 2 feet wide, and the catwalk, curb and rail width is 3 feet on each side - totaling 54 feet. The stiffening truss width in the suspended span is 68 feet wide making it wider than the roadway it supports.

The height of the roadway at mid-span is approximately 200 feet above water level. The vertical clearance at normal temperature is 155 feet at the center of the main suspension span and 135 feet at the boundaries of the 3,000 ft. navigation channel.

All suspension bridges are designed to move to accommodate wind, change in temperature, and weight. It is possible that the deck at center span could move as much as 35 feet (east or west) due to high winds. This would only happen under severe wind conditions. The deck would not swing or "sway" but rather move slowly in one direction based on the force and direction of the wind. After the wind subsides, the weight of the vehicles crossing would slowly move it back into center position.

I don't like heights and thought this would be a miserable five mile ride but it wasn't. I think it was because I could not look down.

Tomorrow Mackinac Island and the Grand Hotel!

If you want the great postcard at the top of the post check out http://www.detroitmercantile.com. You can get this and other 'provisions for the urban pioneer'.

And if you want more info on my camera here is a link. I know I put this link up regularly but I really like this camera.