Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Feb 7, 2012, 7:55 pm
In West Michigan the wind and waves have built sand dunes. Some of the best dunes on the planet are found there. Marram grasses hold the dunes together.  Their roots weave a network of webs under the sand that keeps the sand from escaping.  Pictured is marram grass but there are other types of g...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jan 29, 2012, 5:31 pm
... garlands of wildflowers from the wooded dunes: bloodroot, Dutchman’s breeches, hepatica, trillium, violets and Pitcher’s thistle. They played in dappled shadows under sassafras, witch hazel and choke cherry trees. Bewitched, young boys carved their names beside names of the girls they love...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jan 21, 2012, 1:30 pm
On the beach this morning the sun was shining and an eagle flew overhead. It flew low enough to scout for any dead fish that the lake may have tossed on shore or fish that might be seen in the water. I took this photo this morning as the eagle flew overhead.Usually ice begins to form along Lake Mi...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jan 19, 2012, 2:42 pm
Great Lakes Areas of Concern About the Areas of Concern The Areas of Concern are watersheds along the Great Lakes suffering from degraded environmental conditions stemming from historic and ongoing pollution. They were designated under the U.S.-Canada Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement based o...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jan 16, 2012, 1:16 pm
The Detroit Free Press Tina Lam Palisades Nuclear power plant, which sits on the shores of Lake Michigan, could soon be downgraded by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to a status making it among the nation's five worst-performing nuclear plants after a year of accidents, unexpected shutdowns and sa...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jan 5, 2012, 9:30 am
Years ago my husband and I hiked Isle Royale and heard moose but we never heard wolves.  We saw a moose in our path and we saw moose wading in the waters.  The wolves are evasive so we never saw one.  We heard loons at night and many song birds during the day. We picked tasty thimbleberries ...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Dec 26, 2011, 5:54 pm
The Dynamic Great Lakes is available on Amazon's Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/The-Dynamic-Great-Lakes-ebook/dp/B005HM9BGU/ref=ntt_at_ep_edition_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2 The book got so many great reviews that the publisher deemed it "Critically Acclaimed." The book has been updated recently. ...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Dec 16, 2011, 11:15 am
Unlike some types of salmon that may die after spawning, the steelhead lives to return and spawn year after year guided by their uncanny senses. Their particular place of birth is imprinted in their bodies and nothing short of death can keep them from returning to it. Their senses, especially th...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Nov 26, 2011, 2:43 pm
The Dynamic Great Lakes is available on Amazon's Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/The-Dynamic-Great-Lakes-ebook/dp/B005HM9BGU/ref=ntt_at_ep_edition_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2 The book got so many great reviews that the publisher deemed it "Critically Acclaimed." The book has been updated recently.
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Nov 19, 2011, 8:13 am
Pictured are glacial grooves on Kelley's Island in Lake Erie.  This is the work of Ice Age glaciers.  Here is a quote from my book, the Dynamic Great Lakes: The glaciers ground softer rocks into smaller and smaller pieces. The underside of the glacier picked up sharp pieces of stone and rasped t...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Nov 18, 2011, 8:57 am
By Bobby Carmichael, USA TODAY   A BP (BP) refinery in Indiana will be allowed to continue to dump mercury into Lake Michigan under a permit issued by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. The permit exempts the BP plant at Whiting, Ind., 3 miles southeast of Chicago, from a 199...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Nov 15, 2011, 8:06 am
           Books by Barbara  Spring http://barbaraspring.yolasite.com You will find reviews of my three books at this link.  The books are available on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble and many other places on the www.
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Nov 12, 2011, 11:50 am
My watercolor of Flower Pot Island in Georgian Bay, part of Lake Huron.  I enjoyed hiking the Bruce Trail in Canada and going out on a glass bottom boat to observe sunken ships.  These waters can be dangerous.  Wind and waves have sculpted the sandstone into shapes resembling flower pots. My book...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Oct 28, 2011, 2:21 pm
Lattices of salmon ribs litter the banks of a stream. On cold autumn nights, frost flowers bloom reflecting star light. The stream babbles and unintelligible song as it rushes westward. It is the salmons’ place to be born, to spawn; it is their place to disintegrate and die. Salmon are anadromo...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Oct 24, 2011, 1:57 pm
Al Gore, who shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for his campaign to awaken people to the climate change threat, said warmer temperatures could nullify much of the progress made in recent decades to heal the battered Great Lakes. Increasingly, severe storms made worse by greater volumes of water vapor...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Oct 21, 2011, 1:30 pm
http://www.publishamerica.net/product530.html  The Wilderness Within CircuitsLight from a star that died shines outfrom jade green eyes.A salmon tail fans streambed stonesand dark silt swirls.Millennia ago a star spurt fire andnow a constellation of eggsand white milt spiral downin black water.Fis...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Oct 18, 2011, 1:54 pm
Lake Erie  Lake Erie is in Trouble Again Editorial from the Detroit Free Press 10/18/2011 With Erie's health in jeopardy, years after herculean efforts to clean it up, there's a dire need to take action before it worsens -- and spreads. In August, for example, the view from space showed algae spann...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Oct 17, 2011, 10:59 am
I painted this while at Hoffmaster State Park on the shore of Lake Michigan.  Pictured are the trees on wooded sand dunes.  Right now the colors are in their glory.  It's wonderful to get out and see them.  To learn more about the Great Lakes and their wooded dunes, read The Dynamic Great Lakes...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Oct 12, 2011, 3:59 pm
In the wooded dunes along Lake Michigan some birds are preparing for winter.  The tufted titmouse hammers seeds into the bark of trees for times when they will be hard to find.  Woodpeckers fatten on insects found in the bark of trees. I painted this watercolor of a woods near my home.  We see pi...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Oct 7, 2011, 5:39 pm
http://www.amazon.com/The-Dynamic-Great-Lakes-ebook/dp/B005HM9BGU/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1314292440&sr=1-1 $7.95 when ordered for Amazon.com's Kindle.  $9.95 when ordered from publisherhttp://www.publishamerica.net/product23502.html  http://www.publishamerica.net/product530.htmlÂ...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Sep 30, 2011, 7:42 pm
Lake Michigan is up to its old tricks again: the waves are very high and kite boarders are loving it.  It is dangerous, but that must be part of the appeal.  I took this video a year ago.  The lake is even wilder today.  http://youtu.be/MZwLo-x_k8Y Click the link to see kite boarding.
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Sep 25, 2011, 1:49 pm
Circuits Light from a star that died shines out from jade green eyes. A salmon tail fans streambed stones and dark silt swirls. Millennia ago a star spurt fire and now a constellation of eggs and white milt spiral down in black water. Fishbone lattices litter the stream that speaks of glaciers and p...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Aug 28, 2011, 2:26 pm
http://www.amazon.com/Barbara-Spring/e/B002PI5IQQ  The Dynamic Great Lakes is $7.95 when ordered for Amazon's Kindle.  The link goes to my Amazon page. There is a bumper crop of salmon and trout this year since their food base, alewives, is abundant. The Great Lakes are dynamic. Everything change...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Aug 25, 2011, 3:02 pm
Research conducted on the Great Lakes is very important.  With the knowledge gained, lets hope that our government has the will to do what is necessary for the sake of our freshwater seas. The Lake Guardian is the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) largest Great La...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Aug 24, 2011, 10:01 am
A tern rides the wind over Lake Michigan.  People fly kites on the beach, sail, surf and kiteboard taking their cues from the birds.  Regattas, sunset sails and all such pleasures are found on the Great Lakes.
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Aug 22, 2011, 12:05 pm
http://www.publishamerica.net/product4614.html Sophia’s Lost and Found:Poems of Above and Below My other books are The Dynamic Great Lakes non fiction The Wilderness Within poems and essays from wild places in the world.
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Aug 20, 2011, 10:23 am
This is a wonderful time of year to visit national parks on the Great Lakes.  Pictured are Lake Superior and Lake Michigan. Each place is unique.  On Isle Royale there are wolves, moose and hiking trails that go through thimbleberry bushes.  At the Pictured Rocks there are boats that can take you...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Aug 19, 2011, 4:59 pm
Grand Haven Salmon FestivalFriday, September 16th is the Fresh Catch Fish Boil from 4:30pm to 7:30pm. Enjoy a traditional Salmon Fish Boil, live music, and more. $10 for Adults & $5 children. It's a great family event put on by the Grand Haven Sons of American Legion!Grand Haven Salmon Festival - G...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Aug 12, 2011, 10:23 am

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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Aug 11, 2011, 6:50 am
The fishing boats are out today.  Read about how the Great Lakes became a mecca for trout and salmon fishing in The Dynamic Great Lakes, a critically acclaimed non-fiction book. The book is widely available in bookstores and on the net.  Barnes & Noble offers a good price.
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Aug 8, 2011, 10:25 am
The Trace played at the Fennville Winery in Michigan to an appreciative crowd.  It was one of their cookouts with three kinds of wine included and excellent food. Because of the moderating effect of the Great Lakes, vineyards such as the one at Fennville grow beautiful grapes. Sitting next to the v...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Aug 3, 2011, 1:06 pm
A tern takes flight over the Great Lakes above a welter of waves.  The Dynamic Great Lakes is a book about the nature of life in, above and around the five Great Lakes.  It is available in Michigan from Schuler books in Lansing and Grand Rapids, The Bookman in Grand Haven, Barnes & Noble and Amazo...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Aug 1, 2011, 2:22 pm
Catching a wave on Lake Michigan.  The Great Lakes are freshwater seas where people frolic on the beach, kiteboard, paddleboard, surf, sailboard and fly kites on the beaches. Fishing is good also for steelhead, lake run brown trout, coho and chinnok salmon. Read more about the Great Lakes in The Dy...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jul 29, 2011, 3:50 pm
From a satellite the Great Lakes waters are easily seen from space. These freshwater seas support an amazing array of life from the prehistoric looking sturgeon to recently planted fish such as Pacific salmon: chinook and coho. Read more in The Dynamic Great Lakes available at Barnes and Noble as we...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jul 25, 2011, 10:04 pm
Fishing from the pier in Grand Haven that marks the Grand River that flows into Lake Michigan is popular as is fishing from boats.  Charters take sports fishers out and often come back with a catch of coho and king salmon, Pacific salmon that were planted in the Great Lakes. Yesterday the governor ...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jul 16, 2011, 8:33 am
All  sorts of water sports make Grand Haven on Lake Michigan a lively place in the summer.  People love to stroll on the pier where the Grand River flows into Lake Michigan.  Fishing from the pier or from boats is popular as is sailing. Read more about the Great Lakes and what lies under the wat...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jul 15, 2011, 7:39 am
Rock paintings found on Lake Superior's shore. I found this youtube video fascinating. http://youtu.be/ShyHwMzEI_E
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jul 12, 2011, 9:13 am
Beach combing 1 goose, 5 crows, 2 gulls 2 dead perch, 1 dead carp, 1 dead salmon          1 brown dog with yellow eyes. 1 blue heron with long toes Walked miles in the sand. I found a Waboba bobbing in the lake. I found two long sticks to prop up My big moonflowers. Waves say hush, hush...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jul 11, 2011, 8:57 am
Summer's Horses Rain and hail shake my window pane Summer’s horses in a dead heat Slam dunk torrents of rain. Black horses thunder again and again From dark storms spawned in the west Rain and hail shake my window pane. Whinnies, heavy hooves  beat-- And insane sums of rain Summer’s horses...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jul 6, 2011, 5:08 pm
Summer is in full swing on the Great Lakes.  People are enjoying the sunshine, sandy beaches and fresh air.  To learn more about the freshwater seas, their fishes, their features and their ecology, The Dynamic Great Lakes is informative, yet easy to read.  Order from Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com or...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jul 4, 2011, 9:29 am
The Fourth of July A songbird ripples still air In still water salmon and trout lie deep A skateboard boy rolls down the steep road. Mourning doves flutter To the nest they built under my window. I guess I’ll get up. It’s the fourth of July.                       ...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jun 30, 2011, 2:24 pm
 The Great Lakes Imprint In Us Leave the Great Lakes?Never.We feel their pulse in our blood,in our sinews, our bones.vibrations in our bellies.Their islands arise in waking dreams.And even in sleep we knowmoon, stars and planets float in their watersuntil dawn.The Great Lakes gulp the sun at noonwh...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jun 28, 2011, 4:30 pm
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is located on the south shore of Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, between the communities of Munising (west) and Grand Marais (east).  Pictured are Grand Sable Dunes.  The Pictured Rocks on Lake Superior are interesting, but these dunes are pretty spec...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jun 23, 2011, 6:12 pm
Pictured is Duluth, Minnesota On the Great Lakes, linked by connecting rivers and man made locks, a ship may navigate for 2,342 miles from Duluth, Minnesota at the western tip of Lake Superior to Kingston, Ontario at the entrance of the St. Lawrence River and then down the Saint Lawrence River to th...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jun 21, 2011, 10:57 am
Since there are numerous aging nuclear power plants in the Great Lakes Basin, 33 plus four that are not running, we should be aware of the loose regulations.  Here is a link to an important AP article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110620/ap_on_re_us/us_aging_nukes_part1
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jun 18, 2011, 3:18 pm
Imagine this if you can.  Glaciers one to nearly two and a half miles high bulldozed their way through our continent four times.  Slowly, ever so slowly they ground across the landscape scooping out old riverbeds and then slowly melted back north over thousands of years leaving freshwater of the G...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jun 15, 2011, 9:01 am
Wetlands are very important.  The native species of plants help prevent floods and filter out pollutants. They also are nurserys for birds and fish.  Pictured is a wetland with an invasive species: purple loosestrife.  This plant does not belong in Great Lakes wetlands because it takes over and n...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jun 13, 2011, 9:38 am
Reviewer:  Norman Goldman Editor Bookpleasures        Many of us know very little about the five Great Lakes other than perhaps being able to name them. As Barbara Spring states in her introduction to her outstanding primer The Dynamic Great Lakes they are "a flowing river of seas left behin...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jun 6, 2011, 5:05 pm
The Grand Rapids Press Howard Myerson NEW RICHMOND -- Dawn Petrowski was careful to use a long feather to gently stir the brew, the salt bath being given to a tankful of tiny Great Lakes sturgeon. The salt would kill any fungus in the Kalamazoo River water. The feather was to assure the 9-day-old a...
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Barbara Spring posted an article on Dynamic Great Lakes - Jun 4, 2011, 9:43 am
The sand dunes along Lake Michigan are gifts of the west wind.  It was here that the father of ecology, Henry Chandler Cowles, made observations about the rapidly changing plant life that led to the science of ecology. In 1899 he published The Ecological Relation of the Vegetation on the Sand Dunes...
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