Drummond Island, MI

[DougGrosjean]

Hoping this is of some interest here. Pics from a trip to Drummond Island, MI; to explore Jeep / ORV trails on my 1992 GS.

Drummond Island is located about one mile off the eastern tip of the UP of MI. Easy directions: go north on I-75 across the Mackinaw Bridge, continue about another 10 miles north, then head 50 miles east.

Small selection of pics here:
http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h33/DougGrosjean/Drummond_Island_2006/?sc=6

More to come, in case any dualsporters are on the fence about a trip to this place. This is about half the good ones I got - I shot just over a dozen rolls. Rolleiflex, Widelux, and a $15 Argus that was made in Ann Arbor MI. I felt sort of like the Martian rover...

Maxton Plains was the coolest (road was just bare flat limestone across what looked like tundra), though I'm told Marblehead is pretty awesome as well.

Oh, and the Mackinaw City and Drummond Island infrastructure pics - I'm in a contest to spell out M-Riders using the first letter of town names. It's documented by photographs, and the prize is a belt buckle. Though the woman at the Mackinaw City Chamber of Commerce told me she hoped I'd win a new riding suit.... <wince>

Doug Grosjean
douggrosjean@wcnet.org

 

[bluestune]

Thanks Doug, I'm a big fan of panoramas!! Looks like a great area for riding, now I just need a GS.

 

[DJW]

Very nice, Doug. I look forward to seeing the rest.

OT: Are you going to Vermont?

 

[DougGrosjean]

Thanks Doug, I'm a big fan of panoramas!! Looks like a great area for riding, now I just need a GS.

Thanks! Those panos are with a Widelux and 35mm, the lens rotates. Not photoshop, and they cover about 120 degrees of view. It's a challenge to compose well with it, because you get soooooooooooooo much!

I sure do enjoy my GS, although I thought they were silly till I rode one. The Drummond Island trip is about ideal for one - long pavement and then dirt once there.

BTW, I'm a fan of your photos as well. You do good work. The Widelux would rock in your neck of the woods.

 

[DougGrosjean]

Very nice, Doug. I look forward to seeing the rest.

OT: Are you going to Vermont?

Thanks! Was fun to be out riding / shooting.

No, to Vermont. No can do, the time I could have used to ride there with my 11 y/o son is being eaten up in court with my ex (she's withholding him from his summer with me, on a whim, hence the court time).

Actually, the Drummond Island trip was to be a father-son trip too.

 

[99007]

Cool shots Doug. Like the ones with a panorama.

 

[DougGrosjean]

Cool shots Doug. Like the ones with a panorama.

Hi Cliffy,

Thanks!

I have one (not posted yet) that I worked on over the w/e - it's 2 of the panos grafted together with Photoshop, of the Mackinaw Bridge from Mackinaw City.

Since the Widelux can get 120 degrees in one shot, with 2-3 shots grafted together you can get an amazing amount of coverage.

Doug

 

[DougGrosjean]

Very nice, Doug. I look forward to seeing the rest.

Cool - I've now got up as many as I'll put up.

I like the Mackinaw Bridge panoramic. It's two panos spliced together in Photoshop. Was accidental, I wasn't actually meaning to shoot two that matched, but when I got the pics back....

 

[nhlkats]

cool pics. how does one maneuver mud like that?

 

[DougGrosjean]

cool pics. how does one maneuver mud like that?

I don't know how others would do it, but I stopped, turned around, and went back the way I came.

There's more than one route to Marblehead on the east end of the island, and the other route has no mud but big rocks. For me, rocks are at least possible to ride through - mud isn't.

 

[Visian]

Gnarly

Rocks, mud and sand... you're the man!

Great panoramas... I *love* those because they're much more like being there.

Thanks for posting Doug... will miss you in VT.

Ian

 

[DougGrosjean]

Rocks, mud and sand... you're the man!

Great panoramas... I *love* those because they're much more like being there.

Thanks for posting Doug... will miss you in VT.

Ian

Thanks Ian, glad you liked. But I didn't go through the mud - I'm not that brave (or skilled)..!

I'm having a blast with the GS. In a few more years, it may become the favorite bike I've owned (out of about 13 so far). In one year, it's racked up a lot of really great memories.

Also having a blast with the panoramic camera. There's so many photos that don't quite fit into a normal lens... A normal photo is a sentence, the pano is an entire chapter.

And our paths will cross again sometime. Sharon, JL (hopefully, his mom is being weird), and I are headed down to Orlando and Disney and New Orleans the second & third week of August, so just *might* see you then.

If Jean-Luc goes, we'll be in the CRV. If not, we may take the GS. Curious to see NOLA, we spent a week there about a month before Katrina....