Exploring Sulphur Island’s Rocks

[@kerryreynolds9919]

The spherical rocks found in shale are conceptions. Fossilized mud balls called kettle stones. If you ever find one of size you can handle, try splitting one. Sometimes there are very interesting fossils inside.

[@amandadrinsinger6121]

Are those readily split with a hammer of sorts?

[@Abpgsetiloincawdyubkolmbrs]

I kept waiting for you to "skip" one of those nice flat stones over the calm water. Thanks again for sharing the experience with us!

[@MichiganRocks]

Nope, throwing rocks into the water upsets people.

[@lexi7824]

barb mckay lol I kept thinking the same thing

[@Abpgsetiloincawdyubkolmbrs]

Michigan Rocks Zing!

[@Ottedikkie]

Me too!

[@happycamper4thewin]

Yep, me too!

[@rosalindhendricks6337]

Nice trip. That large piece of shale would be a great chalk board for family notes.

[@MichiganRocks]

I thought of that. Slate is metamorphosed shale, so it's close to a chalkboard.

[@patriciahartless2095]

Thank you for your beautiful video. That water was so calm. Be careful when you're out there by yourself. You have a great evening.

[@MichiganRocks]

Yeah, I waited a long time for a day that was predicted to be that calm. They're few and far between.

[@lexi7824]

Patricia Hartless Just wanted to say how kind & thoughtful your message was. Need more folks out there like yourself ☮️

[@janetmccall674]

Thanks for bringing us along! It was a beautiful day on the water, and an interesting island!

[@staceymcmahan5016]

You could definitely make a travel show with your videos. I watch them over and over. We Only got to spend a few weeks in Michigan and the UP and I fell in love with every part I loved the rockhounding and wished I knew what to look for. Askedfolks but they weren't revealing their secrets and books I bought were limited . Still enjoyed it and I'm hooked . Got to see pictured Rocks , Porcupine Mountains and surrounding areas . So relaxing and mesmering to jusbeachcomb. I have UP fever haha thank you for your wonderfully videos , tutorials and knowledge of Rocks and rock tumbling .

[@MichiganRocks]

Those are a couple of great areas. I hope you got up into the Keweenaw Peninsula too.

[@ruthsawyer3357]

I wish I live nearby to explore the place too but I lived in London, UK. I’m so happy to see your videos that as if I’m having adventure with you while you go around places in every trip you have. Thanks for showing all these awesome videos.

[@MichiganRocks]

My priest is from Scotland. Would it help if I dragged him along to do the talking so you feel more at home?

[@giffjim55]

Wild guess on those domes: since it’s called sulphur Island, those may be from vents from hot springs.

[@MichiganRocks]

No hot springs around at this time. No noticeable sulphur either.

[@robertbradford3461]

@@MichiganRocks is it called something else besides sulfur island, is that maybe what locals call it? Because I can not find a listing or location for it, could you help?

[@MichiganRocks]

@@robertbradford3461 Make sure that satellite view is on. It doesn't seem to show up without it. goo.gl/maps/ca4nsd3eqQnrZveE7. Please don't destroy the concretions.

[@robertbradford3461]

@@MichiganRocks no no wouldn't do that, I don't have any intention of going there, was curious because it's not listed as an island in the lakes, maybe it's just there sometimes.

[@MichiganRocks]

@@robertbradford3461 It's always there. It's not just a tiny little thing. It takes an hour or so to walk around it.

[@NurseMickiLea]

Wow the water clarity is insane!!

[@katherinecalderon50]

Wow, so beautiful...thank for posting. I love looking at the rocks...❤️❤️❤️

[@MichiganRocks]

You're welcome. I love this island. I've only kayaked out there three times because I'm really cautious about not getting stuck out there when it gets too rough. Every time has been really enjoyable though.

[@AgateDad]

I want to so this so badly on Superior! Looks so peaceful! Great video!

[@happycamper4thewin]

2 years ago we went kayaking on Lake Superior and landed on Agate Beach in Copper Harbor. Amazing trip but the black flies made rock collecting all but impossible!

[@AgateDad]

@@happycamper4thewin that's a bummer!

[@MichiganRocks]

I bought a head to toe mesh suit after having an experience like that. I have worn it twice since buying it about five years ago. It's not perfect, but it made an intolerable day tolerable.

[@AgateDad]

@@MichiganRocks I've only experienced mosquitoes when agate hunting, that's pretty annoying.

[@MichiganRocks]

@@AgateDad you have no idea how bad stable flies are. Mosquitos are no problem. You just put on some bug spray and you're all set. Stable flies look like house flies. They land mostly on your legs. They don't wait long to bite. The worst thing is that there are many times hundreds trying to land on you at the same time. Check out this picture. It's not an exaggeration. www.nps.gov/piro/planyourvisit/insects.htm

[@sylvainrichard6679]

Thank’s for share this trip, It’s a nice place again !

[@lexi7824]

Beautiful video, felt like I was there enjoying the serenity. Loved the sound of that shale “crunching” under your feet, like you mentioned. Lots of great skippers I noticed...

[@MichiganRocks]

It's a skipper's paradise.

[@cactuswren9771]

Yes!! Way cool shale. Concretions can sometimes be formed by mineral-rich fluids seeping through localized areas of the pore spaces between the clay minerals that make up the mud stone/shale. The minerals precipitate and form a little bit harder cement than in the surrounding rock. That makes the piece of rock that had the mineral fluids harder to erode. So they erode out of the surrounding rock as rounded shapes. It's like the difference between a calcite cement containing calcium carbonate and a gypsum cement containing calcium sulfate. The gypsum cement makes that part of the rock a little harder.

[@robertbradford3461]

No no no, you are talking about anhydrite vs gypsum, concretions are formed when plants or animals die in the lake and is covered by sediment, it precipitates calcium, that turns to calcite cementing sediment together the softer material washed away leaving the concretion, almost always a fossil inside. As soon as decomp stops the formation stops, it happens relatively fast as well a few hundred years to form

[@sarahstrong7174]

Thankyou for sharing your adventure with us. I really enjoyed going in the canoe with you. Appreciated the trip out.

[@MichiganRocks]

Sarah Strong it was a little crowded with 1,600 people in the boat with me, but it sure was fun.

[@ruthwagner2348]

Very cool! Thanks for exploring for us!

[@MichiganRocks]

It was my pleasure, literally.

[@anitamitchell3452]

If a person were so incline you could use that beautiful shale to make a mosaic table top and resin it for protection. PS ... thanks for walking in the freezing water ... I know what that feels like and it can be quite painful till the numbness takes over. Very interesting island. Thanks for bring us along.

[@MichiganRocks]

The water wasn't *that* cold. I was in for a lot longer than I showed in the video. I was just whining more than I should have.

[@luna-uw4ib]

This is such a awesome experience to see this island! Thank you so much for making this! Those rocks are so unique. Personally I think your rock hunting level is at 110% with that kayak of yours! Thats just a brilliant idea.

[@MichiganRocks]

It didn’t seem like much of a stretch to me to combine my kayaking and rock hunting hobbies. It sure helps me get to places I couldn’t get otherwise.

[@Valerieknitterhands]

Thank you for taking me on another great trip

[@MichiganRocks]

You're welcome, Valerie. I really liked this video and the interesting rocks there. There's not much variety, but the rocks are so different from other places near here.

[@mary-anneswanson5671]

Really neat looking rock formations. Perfect place if you like skipping stones . I would love that huge piece of shale you picked up for a painting project. Take care stay safe .

[@MichiganRocks]

I think this beach is really interesting. There are prettier beaches, but I love the shale and concretions here.

[@jshilohshea381]

the shale was interesting and the other stones...piqued my curiosity...never seen those before...and I noticed the water level has risen...or the island sinking ?

[@MichiganRocks]

The water is way up this year. Either that, or all of Michigan is sinking!

[@johnbuck5181]

Omg, we’re all gonna die of global cooling, I mean warming, I mean climate change. 11 more years and we are all dead, I know it for sure because people say it.

[@SweetFeels]

Brenda J They really don’t when they can print up what ever amount they’d like😝

[@kathleennorton6108]

@@SweetFeels And launder it directly into their own pockets. All those good causes, don't cha know!

[@KatieReadsKoziesAndMore]

This was a delightful ride. That big piece of shale would make a great piece of wall art. Those petrified “mud pots” were fascinating. Thanks for sharing.

[@MichiganRocks]

This was one of my favorite little trips last summer. It was a perfect day.

[@virginiarocks]

Some kind of mineral precipitation around a nucleus after sediments are buried ~ over a very long time. Wow. Really cool. Thanks for taking us there.

[@MichiganRocks]

I really like this island. Cool stuff here.

[@treasureisland3778]

*Crisp clear water, spectacular skies..A cool video..thanks for sharing!*

[@MichiganRocks]

You have an appropriate KZbin name to be watching my video. I don't think I have any other island videos for you though.

[@treasureisland3778]

@@MichiganRocks *lol thanks my friend..I do alot of fossil, coin, rock, treasure, scuba diving. I'm alot like you..You never know what's on the other side or a point if you don't start walking.."I can walk miles in a desert just to find what's on a slope of a mountain"*

[@MichiganRocks]

@@treasureisland3778 I understand you.

[@storytimewithunclebill1998]

Another cool spot. That shale is something. Looks like pine bark. More awesome finds. Was fun to watch. Great video

[@MichiganRocks]

The first time I walked around that island, I came around a corner and couldn't figure out why someone had covered the beach with bark mulch. Then I stepped on it.

[@ashleyw116]

Thanks for going into the water. Yours truly a Petoskey MI fan... Which coincidentally, is one of the hardest places to find Petoskey stones anymore.

[@MichiganRocks]

Anything for my viewers! It was pretty chilly though.

[@kathleennorton6108]

So much fun to see Alpena. My dad spent his youth there and loved the water. He made his boat from scratch.

[@MichiganRocks]

I’ve always thought it would be fun to build a cedar strip kayak, but I’m not sure I have the skill or the patience.

[@lindaeads4770]

Came across your video of kayaking at Sulfur Island and have now watched many of your adventures. Very interesting! We live downstate and haven't been to the Alpena area for about 20 years. Thank you for enlightening us about Michigan rocks, especially the puddingstone. We're already planning a trip north to check out Rockport quarry, although with this cold spell it likely won't be until next spring. Love your videos!! Keep them coming!

[@MichiganRocks]

Linda Eads the weather has gone downhill quickly over the past couple weeks. There’s snow in the forecast every day for the next week. I’d wait until spring.

[@hannahpumpkins4359]

A concretion is a volume of sedimentary rock in which a mineral cement fills the spaces between the sediment grains. Concretions are often ovoid or spherical in shape, although irregular shapes also occur. The word 'concretion' is derived from the Latin con meaning 'together' and crescere meaning 'to grow'. Concretions form within layers of sedimentary strata that have already been deposited. They usually form early in the burial history of the sediment, before the rest of the sediment is hardened into rock. This concretionary cement often makes the concretion harder and more resistant to weathering than the host stratum. They quite often form by the precipitation of a considerable amount of cementing material around a nucleus, often organic, such as a leaf, tooth, piece of shell or fossil. For this reason, fossil collectors commonly break open concretions in their search for fossil animal and plant specimens. Concretions vary in shape, hardness and size, ranging from objects that require a magnifying lens to be clearly visible to huge bodies three meters in diameter and weighing several thousand pounds. The giant, red concretions occurring in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, in North Dakota, are almost 3 m (10 ft) in diameter. Spheroidal concretions, as large as 9 m (30 ft) in diameter, have been found eroding out of the Qasr El Sagha Formation within the Faiyum depression of Egypt. Concretions are usually similar in color to the rock in which they are found. Concretions occur in a wide variety of shapes, including spheres, disks, tubes, and grape-like or soap bubble-like aggregates. They are commonly composed of a carbonate mineral such as calcite, a form of silica such as chert, flint, or jasper; or an iron oxide or hydroxide such as goethite and hematite. They can also be composed of other minerals that include dolomite, ankerite, siderite, pyrite, marcasite, barite and gypsum. Although concretions often consist of a single dominant mineral, other minerals can be present depending on the environmental conditions which created them. For example, carbonate concretions, which form in response to the reduction of sulfates by bacteria, often contain minor, percentages of pyrite. Other concretions, which formed as a result of microbial sulfate reduction, consist of a mixture of calcite, barite, and pyrite. Concretions are found in a variety of rocks, but are particularly common in shales, siltstones, and sandstones. They often outwardly resemble fossils or rocks that look as if they do not belong to the stratum in which they were found. Occasionally, concretions contain a fossil, either as its nucleus or as a component that was incorporated during its growth but concretions are not fossils themselves. They appear in nodular patches, concentrated along bedding planes, protruding from weathered cliffsides, randomly distributed over mud hills or perched on soft pedestals. Small hematite concretions ("blueberries") have been observed on Mars. Concretions are commonly misunderstood geologic structures. Often mistaken for fossil eggs, turtle shells, or bones, they are actually not fossils at all but a very common geologic phenomenon in all types of sedimentary rock; including sandstone which is made up of compacted sand grains, shale which is made up of compacted mud, siltstone which is made up of a fine grained silt, and limestone which is made up of calcium carbonate precipitated by many marine invertebrates.

[@anitamitchell3452]

Hannah Cwik ... so, in laymen terms it's like a pearl being formed around a central object. Very interesting. Thanks for the insight.

[@garyl4672]

Thanks for making my day go faster.

[@susanorr7535]

Great rocks. The round ones looked like they were bubbling up melted and cooled in place.

[@MichiganRocks]

That’s what I thought.

[@davidhile5363]

After watching tonight’s video I had to scoot over here and watch the Sulpher Island video. The concretions were really cool. It would be sad if people started breaking them open. This is totally different but it reminded me of a time in my early teens when my cousin and I visited his aunt and uncle’s place on a small northern Indiana lake. We were rowing all around the lake and we discovered quite a few places in the shallow waters where there were like 2 ft. dia. extrusions of stuff that had oozed out from the bottom of the lake. Much like a pimple. It was soft and looked like peat moss as best as I can describe it. We actually managed to get the boat stuck on top of one just playing around. I’ve never seen anything like it since.

[@MichiganRocks]

That sounds really weird. I wonder what caused it.

[@winonajohnston2539]

I'm just reading all the comments and I see you answer people more than any other channel I've seen. Thank you for that because many questions get answered that we can read about from others. You be careful out there, please.

[@MichiganRocks]

So was there a question in there somewhere?

[@winonajohnston2539]

@@MichiganRocks No question; just a statement about your diligence in replying to other's questions/comments, so we can read all of it and find out more about your excursions thru other postings.

[@MichiganRocks]

Winona Johnston I just felt like I needed to respond since you complimented me on being good about responding. I couldn’t ruin my good reputation!

[@davidnollmusic363]

Enjoyed your video. Thanks for making it!

[@purrrrson]

Petrified mud bubbles!!! Yes!! Best description, ever!!

[@MichiganRocks]

Glad you liked that.

[@mtbshorts614]

We have a resort in Alpena and we always ride are jet skis out the it is so much fun, and just the other day we went and snorkeling over some ship wrecks by scarecrow and bird island.

[@MichiganRocks]

I haven't done any shipwreck snorkeling, but I did drift over the wreck of the Bay City right out in front of the small boat harbor. My son had a GoPro at the time and I stuck it underwater and got a perfect video as I drifted over. I should do more of that.

[@mtbshorts614]

@@MichiganRocks you should it is so much fun and it is really cool

[@staceys4044]

Great video! I knew the lake's have risen but wow the water levels are really up ! Thanks for tour.

[@MichiganRocks]

Yeah, a lot of the beaches are gone and the water is right up to the woods. I've seen a few trees that have fallen into the lake because the dirt washed out from under them.

[@kaybree6738]

Michigan Rocks on lake Michigan near St Joseph there are homes that used to be many yards from the shore and are falling into the lake from high water level and wave erosion.

[@MichiganRocks]

@@kaybree6738 Yeah, I've seen stuff on the news about that. It's nice to live on the water until it gets too high or too low. We've had some of each in the past 20 years,

[@deniseview4253]

That makes sense on the bubbles. Hot springs. Oh, you picked up a big piece of shale. What I seen was a coffee table top....lol. It would make a very pretty table top.

[@MichiganRocks]

I don't think those are really petrified bubbles, they just look like that. They are concretions. That flat rock would make a pretty table top, but I think it would be too brittle. Cool to look at though.

[@redlily8101]

Mud bubbles... very cool. Thanks for showing them. Greetings from Oregon

[@MichiganRocks]

I love this Island. Thanks for watching.

[@LadyYoop]

Wow, wow, wow....first off...the oars in the water, and that sound...TRANQUILITY! then..do you think those concretions are slate before it's slate slats? The slate would be phenomenal to paint on! Dollar stores see cheap nail polish and it looks cool painted on rock. You could have your math students paint their favorite holiday by numbers, and add decorations!! Fun! Love the video...thanks for taking us on that spin!!!!

[@MichiganRocks]

I don't know too much about the concretions. I think I'll leave the painting to someone else. The best painting I do is painting walls in my house. Even that is something I avoid as much as possible!

[@LadyYoop]

@@MichiganRocks not you...the kids could paint! What grade do you teach?

[@MichiganRocks]

@@LadyYoop I teach 8th grade math, which is mostly algebra topics. I don't have time to teach everything I'm supposed to teach, so there's no way I could squeeze a painting project in. I'd also have a very hard time trying to convince anyone that painting on rocks was a good way to teach algebra. It probably would be fun though.

[@LadyYoop]

@@MichiganRocks Right...that's a project for little kids....not the ones you teach. by the way...that island must have been bigger at one time..with all the dead trees in the water...that had to be bigger...trees dont' grow in water...

[@MichiganRocks]

@@LadyYoop The water level is really high this year. All the beaches are smaller. When I went there a few years ago, the water was very low. On the side of the island I got to first, there was a wide beach. This year there was no beach at all on that side.

[@Smallathe]

Very cool. Looks like a lovely trip :) Thanks for sharing!

[@MichiganRocks]

It was a great day. I've been there a couple times before, but it's still an amazing place to explore.

[@wolfe1970]

You are so blessed to have that on your doorstep

[@MichiganRocks]

Yes I am. I try to remember it too.

[@kellyhollingsworth6100]

Rob I thing the rock at 11:35 and 13:25 might be vesicular basalt, or tuffa limestone.

[@MichiganRocks]

I'm pretty sure those are concretions.

[@monbon5072]

Love your videos, thanks for sharing.

[@emdee7744]

Interesting journey. Your camera work is phenomenal.

[@MichiganRocks]

Thanks. I don't really think of myself as a great photographer, so I'm glad you think I'm doing okay.

[@gayle8153]

Thank you for braving the frigid water for us, we appreciate it! Those rocks certainly do look like bubbles you would see in a mud pit. If that's how they were formed, they must have had a chance to dry out and stabilize into solid rock somehow. Very interesting island.

[@MichiganRocks]

They are not actually frozen much bubbles, that's just what they look like to me. They're concretions. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concretion

[@gayle8153]

@@MichiganRocks Oh, ok!

[@jb9218]

What a cool treasure of an island you shared with us! A strange new world! I never knew that island existed! Thanks for the adventure :)

[@MichiganRocks]

It's really cool out there. So much different than the shore I left from.

[@dhogue01ify]

The water is so clear

[@MichiganRocks]

Yes it is. Sometimes it gets churned up and isn't so clear, but usually it's like this.

[@happycamper4thewin]

A quick google search reveals that concretions are often formed by calcite diffusing into uncompacted mud. I also learned that much of the northeast portion of the US and southwest portion of Canada is covered in shale. Very cool video.

[@MichiganRocks]

Yeah, I need to do some more research on concretions.

[@no1billiard]

How long did the kayak ride take?

[@MichiganRocks]

I don't know, maybe ten or fifteen minutes.

[@lyricsdebra]

Very cool island and footage. We have a place in Ontario called kettlepoint. They have these giant balls of rock all over that look like little squashed rocks or curling rocks. Haven’t been in years. I’ll go this summer

[@MichiganRocks]

I have seen pictures of Kettle Point before. Cool place.

[@JoseLopez-xk9ng]

Thanks. I like your job.

[@judyhobday4760]

Water is so clear. I would like to be able to get shale. Have to buy at yards that sells rock for yards. Thanks for the video.

[@MichiganRocks]

judy hobday what would you use the shale for?

[@mctron22rd]

I think the nodules may contain fossils. Some you can crack open in the middle and some may have perfectly preserved fossils. All the shale is fascinating to me for some reason. Thanks for sharing this awesome moment with us!

[@MichiganRocks]

Crystal and Robert Dominguez it’s fascinating to me too. Lots of people have told me that the concretions could contain fossils, but I would hate to break them open. There are not many around here and I think they’re cool as is. We have tons of other fossils around too, so I don’t need to break anything to find them.

[@jenjencannon3224]

Wow. Holy ASMR Rob! What a video. Better than National Geographic. I am not a natural explorer myself... but I sure am glad that you are. That was an amazing wee adventure. Thank you, as always. Your efforts are appreciated.

[@MichiganRocks]

I really liked this video a lot too. That island is super cool.

[@stillh2os17]

My compliments on your videos. They're very nicely done and, as a neophyte to polishing and cutting rocks, they've been very informative and helpful for me. As a commenter mentions below, I think you might be seeing Stromatolites, which are lithified bacterial colonies that I believe are the oldest life form yet found. Try searching Google Images for Stromatolites and see what you think. I know that there are Stromatolites found in the Devonian around the Great Lakes, especially on the North Shore of Lake Superior (seldomly warmer than 40 F, btw) in Minnesota. I would appreciate knowing how you made your saw and more about any techniques for polishing slabs or cutting and shaping other types of presentation pieces. Again, thank you for the time and effort that you clearly put into your videos. Judging from the comments below, I'm not the only one who appreciates your efforts!

[@MichiganRocks]

I'm pretty sure those are concretions, not stromatolites. In Rockport quarry, there are stromatolites, but I'm not 100% sure how to identify them. I asked Paleo Joe (who is in the Rockport video) what the large fossils are with kind of seashell shaped markings. He said that they were either stromatolites or something else, but I don't remember what the something else was. I have a video on making heart shaped pendants out of Kona dolomite. Kona dolomite is a beautiful stromatolite I have not built a saw, but I own several. I have some videos on cutting slabs and cutting various shapes on a trim saw. I'll be doing more lapidary videos this winter.

[@mariauschak9899]

Google concretions. I live in the Kettle Point, Ontario (Lake Huron) area. Lots of spherical concretions here. Matter of fact, got a small one outside my door.

[@MichiganRocks]

They get spherical concretions in the LaFarge quarry that is within sight of this island. I haven't seen these oddly shaped ones anywhere else around here. I have seen small weirdly shaped concretions from other places though.

[@merlinjones6485]

Clear water and good photography. I'm from Bay City where the stones are very dull. Flat stones are good for skipping. I prefer the colorful stones from the northwest side of the lower mitten.

[@MichiganRocks]

Merlin Jones have you been up to Lake Superior? There are some colorful rocks up there too.

[@merlinjones6485]

@@MichiganRocks I'd love to go back there but my car is untrustworthy and I have slight fear of going over bridges. It is a bucket list item to find some nice unikites and a few nice agates. For now I'd settle for an hour at Christmas Cove beach half an hour north of Traverse City.

[@MichiganRocks]

Unakite is one of my favorite rocks from Lake Superior. I find some here too, but it's pretty uncommon here.

[@merlinjones6485]

@@MichiganRocks I hear there is a 25 pound load limit to rock collecting. I'm afraid if I ever made it back to the U P that I would be breaking a few laws...at least by a few hundred pound. Is there something wrong with a human that likes stones that much?

[@MichiganRocks]

Merlin Jones no, I think there’s something wrong with the people who don’t love rocks that much. You’re normal.

[@barbaradownie3265]

WHEN IS THE LATEST YOU CAN KAYAK IN LAKE HURON/MICHIGAN BEFORE THE WEATHER TURNS BAD?

[@MichiganRocks]

Any day now. It's supposed to be in the fifties tomorrow. Next week it is supposed to be in the seventies again. It's hard to find a day when the weather is calm enough to get out there safely in a kayak.

[@jlouutube65]

I just saw some of your pics on the 99.1 WFMK website. ;)

[@MichiganRocks]

I have been on a couple of radio websites and also the Detroit Free Press. You could say I'm a ROCKstar.

[@stillh2os17]

I forgot to ask if you might have any tips about sources for obtaining raw materials and/or equipment. Thanks again.

[@MichiganRocks]

I buy most of my equipment used or from The Rock Shed. They have a good selection of rough rocks there too, but it’s more fun to find your own if you have good rocks in your area. therockshed.com

[@yeuxdal]

Are there fossils in any of the flat layers?

[@MichiganRocks]

Nothing that I saw.

[@chrisclover9030]

Looks like at some point it was a hot bubbling liquid...fascinating!!...thank you for sharing! Beautiful place, day!

[@susiemurphy1476]

Shale or slate?

[@MichiganRocks]

Shale. Slate is shale that has undergone metamorphosis. geology.com/rocks/slate.shtml

[@truckerenoch8824]

If you get a "sit on top" kayak, the waves are *_much_* less of an issue. They fish on the ocean with those.

[@gracemccoy1970]

Is camping allowed on the island?

[@MichiganRocks]

I think it's private property.

[@heatherlawrence1896]

How could you be in the water so long. I gone to Duluth Minnesota off Lake Superior and I put my feet in the water and it is soooooooo cold. My feet felt like being put in snow. Them rocks are cool! I love learning about the great lakes. Thank you for sharing.

[@MichiganRocks]

This video was done a few weeks ago when the water was warmer. It’s also in Thunder Bay in Lake Huron. Lake Huron is warmer than Superior and the bay is usually warmer than the main part of the lake. I’ve been swimming in Superior and this was a lot warmer. It was still chilly though.

[@heatherlawrence1896]

Ok, you gave me the chills just thinking about how cold the water is. Just beautiful places you visit.

[@MrSpock-hw7mm]

The one piece looks like a giant fairy stone. Cool videos, I also enjoy rock hunting I live in Wisconsin lots of good shoreline on Lake Michigan to explore.

[@MichiganRocks]

Beaches are the best because even if you don’t find anything, you still got to spend the day on the beach.

[@MrSpock-hw7mm]

@@MichiganRocks For sure, I love the variety of minerals and fossils that can be found on Lake Michigan. Makes me appreciate nature a lot!

[@sharonpape4343]

I love the way it crunches when you walk on the shale, especially the brown stuff. Is that where the Sulphur Island comes from?

[@MichiganRocks]

I love that sound too.

[@dawnhill2508]

So I looked it up, and concretions are formed around a fossil nucleus and contain minerals from that fossil. Pretty interesting

[@rebeccamitchell8631]

Concretions are not always formed around a fossil. The concretion can for around any nucleus. Here's what wiki says: "A concretion is a hard, compact mass of matter formed by the precipitation of mineral cement within the spaces between particles, and is found in sedimentary rock or soil. Concretions are often ovoid or spherical in shape, although irregular shapes also occur." Wikipedia I have some moqui marbles from southern Utah which are iron around a sandstone center. They are BB sized up to softball size and maybe even bigger.

[@robertbradford3461]

@@rebeccamitchell8631 yes they are, concretions can not be formed without calcium as it's precipitated it becomes calcite and calcite is the cement. And it has to have decaying material in order to get the calcium. Don't read wiki unless it verified by another source

[@luvasconcelossuperacao8405]

Essas pedras fininhas deve sem cortantes lembrei daqueles desafios de sobrevivência onde são feitos com essa pedras machadinhas pra cortar árvores e fazer abrigos nas matas.

[@MichiganRocks]

Eu não acho que esse tipo de rocha tenha sido usado para fazer ferramentas. Essas pedras são de xisto. O sílex é uma rocha comum usada para fazer ferramentas.

[@SteveandSusiesHomestead]

Holy smokes I need to get out more...There are so many cool things to see around this state...Thank's... how does the shale compare to slate

[@MichiganRocks]

Slate is metamorphosed shale. I just learned that after my trip out to the island.

[@kaybree6738]

Found the video I was looking for. Didn't sound right the first time I saw it that this was called shale. I knew from my geology class years ago that slate is metamorphosed shale. Isn't this all slate in this location? The concretions were like the ones at the Antrom shale location in the recent video. Amazing. So much bigger than ones I've seen. A lady in Tennessee showed me one when I did a study of the state's rock types and land formations. Just a handful. Not an expert. Just really enjoyed the classes I took. Please help me understand. Thank you for your time and love of teaching.

[@markreetz1001]

Thanks for another great video. Those are really interesting rocks and looked especially cool when they were out of the water. And the shale was cool too. I like the brown stuff. It does look like wood chips.

[@leslyeschoenhuth1107]

* Do the Shale pieces have Fossils in them at all?? ~ Did they ever use Shale for Slate in schools?? (Since it was readily available & roughly the same..)

[@MichiganRocks]

I didn't look really carefully, but I didn't notice any at all. On the shore that I launched my kayak from, there are lots and lots of fossils. The rocks are completely different there, about a mile away. kzbin.info/www/bejne/p3muY6yKfbWSnrc

[@virginiarocks]

Mother Nature does some really cool things. Slate island!! Lake like a mirror .... (for now)

[@MichiganRocks]

Yep, God does good work.

[@wyomingadventures]

That shale looks exactly like the shale we have around here. But ours is red. I have seen concretions like that around here too. But again ours are red and sometimes with a darker color. All I know about the red shale we have is it's got something to do with coal. Which eastern central Wyoming is full of coal beds. Very interesting video!

[@MichiganRocks]

307 Wyoming 4E it’s an interesting place. We don’t have any coal around here.

[@wyomingadventures]

@@MichiganRocks yeah that's a cool place! We also have sulfur wells close by. The concretions do look like bubbles.

[@elainetoppel2582]

They typically form when a mineral precipitates and cements sediment around a nucleus, which is often organic, such as a leaf, tooth, piece of shell or fossil. For this reason, fossil collectors commonly break open concretions in their search for fossil animal and plant specimens.

[@MichiganRocks]

I've been told that before and it has been suggested that I break these open to see what's inside. Although that might be fun for a few minutes, I think these are better left as is.

[@Hewillreturn]

That was cool.

[@MichiganRocks]

I really enjoyed that day. I thought this video should have done better than it did. The videos that really take off are not always the videos that I think are the best.

[@DressYourHorse]

Never have seen anything like this. I'd love it if there were interesting ponds and lakes like you have shown here in my state. Too far to get up there any time soon. Oh, we have stones but nothing of interest that I have found. I'm wild about river rocks and the perfectly round stones and it costs a bundle here. Love watching what you come up with.

[@MichiganRocks]

Yep, I’m lucky to live in such an interesting state.

[@barbaradownie3265]

WAS SHALE EVER MINED IN THAT LOCATION? OR COMMERCIALLY EXCAVATED?

[@MichiganRocks]

I don't know about this island, but nearby, there is a closed shale quarry called Paxton Quarry. www.mindat.org/loc-18031.html

[@ednabart1199]

What are in those spherical rocks?would be cool to open one. It is so awesome out there. You are a lucky man to appreciate this beauty.

[@MichiganRocks]

Those are concretions. A lot of people have told me that there is often a fossil in the center. We have lots of fossils in this area, so I have no need to break open rocks to find one. I wouldn't want to break one of these anyhow, because they're so cool looking. I'd like other people to be able to enjoy them as they are.

[@joang.cavanna2046]

None of your videos that I've watched so far have shale in them. Do you know why this island is so different? Great video - all of them are. Thanks for sharing.

[@MichiganRocks]

No, I don't know. There is shale around here, I just don't hunt rocks in those spots much. There was a whole quarry that is now closed that just mined shale.

[@joang.cavanna2046]

Thanks for your response. I appreciate that you take the time to respond.@@MichiganRocks

[@weeu1]

Did you take home anything from the Sulphur Island?

[@MichiganRocks]

Nope, just memories, and some video.

[@weeu1]

Do you know if the mud bubbles are a result of pockets of sulphur under the island, trying to surface as a bubble. Then when the cold water from the surrounding lake, cools the muddy bubble It solidifies?

[@MichiganRocks]

@@weeu1 No, they're concretions. I just said that they look like frozen mud bubbles. There's also no obvious sulfur on the island. I didn't see any or smell any. I tried to find something that explained how the island was named, but I didn't find anything.

[@playergameing2]

Have u been to rock port if not go to beck wall

[@MichiganRocks]

I have several videos of Rockport. I've been to the back wall and climbed up and over it (not at the steepest parts). What should I be looking for there?

[@skeblen7510]

The sulphur suggestion is interesting but isn't sulphur a very vibrant yellow? They look a bit like the bubbling mud pits at Yellowstone, or maybe the fossil remnant or a sponge or moss? Fascinating place! Thanks so much for sharing your wonderful wanderings!!

[@MichiganRocks]

The concretions aren't sulphur. They're not fossils either. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concretion

[@dawnhill2508]

Like an Alfred Hitchcock movie with the seagulls

[@MichiganRocks]

Dawn Hill I thought the same thing. Sort of creepy. You should have heard them.

[@dawnhill2508]

@@MichiganRocks gives away our age lol

[@martic51]

Pretty place!

[@lyricsdebra]

Do you have an email that I could email you about petoskey and pudding stones?

[@lindaholden9201]

Be careful, it's way to isolated to be alone out there. That said, AWSOME video.

[@MichiganRocks]

I go a lot of places on my own. I'm willing to take a little bit of a risk. I always take a phone with me. Too bad not all the places I go have cell phone towers nearby.

[@zylloz1830]

Hey, Mr.Abram this is a kid from the school you work at, cool videos.

[@MichiganRocks]

aelrics thank you, anonymous kid from school.

[@heathereden842]

Well that was fun. I wonder what the engine humming in the background came from?

[@MichiganRocks]

There were a couple boats and jet skis around. The humming was a boat. Sound carries well over water, so it was hard to avoid some boat noise.

[@nancyphamx]

New word of the day is shale. Videos like this usually makes me dizzy but this one wasn't too bad.

[@MichiganRocks]

My wife got motion sick from one of my kayak videos this spring. Seeing the rocks pass beneath the boat bothered her from some reason.

[@nancyphamx]

Videos of people exploring or going on walks are a bit difficult to watch. I would have to pause after a few minutes and then continue then stop. I'm slowly watching your rock hunting videos. Lots to learn.

[@MichiganRocks]

@@nancyphamx That's a bummer that they make you sick. My GoPro stabilizes the video somewhat and I spend a lot of time straightening horizons because I can't seem to hold the camera straight. But if you're walking or in a boat, it's hard to keep it perfectly smooth.

[@karlsjunior466]

I would be skipping those good flat stones on that mirror surfaced lake until the sun went down or my shoulder gave out!

[@MichiganRocks]

It's definitely a good place for that. No need to search around for the perfect stone.

[@mohamadanwar4209]

Also, on the notion of shale and its formation of sharp little pieces. Shale is a sedimentary rock that forms usually due to the compaction of layers of clay through the years one layer over the other resulting in enough heat and pressure to compact the into shale. Because of the loose chemical bonding between each layer and the one above or below, it is very easy to separate layers of shale from each other. However, in many old civilizations they figured out that while shale stones are not very compact, they have very sharp edges. This is why that we can find ancient artifacts almost everywhere around the globe from old civilizations that used shale stones as arrow heads, knives, and cutting tools. Thank you

[@MichiganRocks]

I didn't know that shale was used for tools. I know that chert and flint were. We have chert in this area, but it's usually in pretty small pieces. Most would not be big enough to make anything but maybe a small arrowhead. I have not found any artifacts yet.

[@captpaul8827]

Are you sure you're not confusing shale with slate? Shale is much too soft to be used for tools, whereas slate is much harder and is known to be used by the ancients, but was still not the preferred stone for making sharp edged tools.

[@ktlivingherway516]

Those concretions look like Giant Moji marbles from the desert area in the Southwest

[@MichiganRocks]

Those must be really cool. I have never heard of them, but I'll look them up right now.

[@ktlivingherway516]

Also called Moqui marbles. They look just like them but Giant and without the desert paint on the surface that forms in the desert. It's like a light hardened coating that forms around them but looks almost like iron

[@MichiganRocks]

@@ktlivingherway516 I read that those have iron in them. The concretions here have iron in them too.

[@cindyrhodes7393]

What exactly is shale ? Whats it made from ? Sorry if these sound like bumb questions , but they say if you dont know ask ? Lol

[@MichiganRocks]

I'm not an expert on questions like this, but this page might help: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shale

[@kaybree6738]

@@MichiganRocks this Wikipedia info just doesn't seem correct. Describing slate. Hmmmm

[@MichiganRocks]

@@kaybree6738 What part is wrong?

[@kaybree6738]

Showing and describing slate and calling it shale.

[@MichiganRocks]

@@kaybree6738 As I said above, I'm not an expert, but I don't see any errors. Slate is metamorphosed shale, as I understand it. Here's another article: sciencing.com/tell-difference-between-shale-slate-8697556.html One of us is confused, but I'm not sure if it's you or me!

[@barbaradownie3265]

IS THERE REAL SULPHUR THERE?

[@MichiganRocks]

I wondered that too. I tried to do some online research, but I couldn't find much at all about the island. I don't know how it got its name. There was no smell of sulphur.

[@StupidStreams]

My friends and I have been planning on kayaking out there for a couple years. Are there legal parking areas nearby?

[@MichiganRocks]

Yes. Park in the square in this Google Maps link. www.google.com/maps/@45.005502,-83.434739,198m/data=!3m1!1e3

[@happycamper4thewin]

I love the shot of you kayaking away from the island! Fantastic video but that egret was very unhappy with you 😅

[@MichiganRocks]

I was in a hurry to get home, so I paddled fast.

[@MultiCrackerjacker]

Ok so now I want to know what is inside one of those burp bubble rocks! Fantastic video! We have some interesting rocks in Georgian Bay too 🇨🇦

[@MichiganRocks]

MultiCrackerjacker they’re too cool to break open. I was almost in Georgian Bay once. When I was a teenager, my family took our 21 ft. Boat on a trip to the North Channel. We turned around at Killarney. Unfortunately, I wasn’t into rocks back then.

[@MultiCrackerjacker]

Well you need to come back and visit. Penetanguishene is the place to see . And I guess we can leave the burpy rocks alone.

[@happycamper4thewin]

We used to sail to Kelly’s Island quite often when I was a kid. I always loved seeing the huge glacial grooves!

[@MichiganRocks]

Happy Camper my daughter and son in law visited there recently. I had never heard of the place. Those grooves look amazing.