By Kevin Howell
Winds were whipping and Lake Michigan waters were predicted to produce sizable waves on a recent fall Friday. My navigator Jean and I decided it was a great time to take a ride to Ludington and drive north along Lakeshore Drive to catch the action.
“Let’s go check out the lake; waves are supposed to be seven feet,” Jean suggested that morning.
I also wanted to catch one more sculpture to present in the fifth of our six Mason County Culture Trail travels.
This sculpture stands alone in front of the Mason County Library, on Ludington Avenue in downtown Ludington, enroute to the lakeshore. It depicts a young girl holding an open book, birds flying up from the pages like the imagination of a child flying free. I’ve been an avid reader since I can remember, and that’s a long time, so the image the sculpture – Flights of Learning – presents seems apropos to me.
Created by artist Bryce Pettit, of Brigham Young University, the sculpture’s owls, hummingbirds, meadowlarks, and terns are metaphors for “the sense of excitement and wonder a book gives us,” according to the trail guide.
The sculpture set my mood for the lakeshore visit. We took Lakeshore Drive to the south end of Ludington State Park and one of our favorite pullouts. Climbing to the top of the small dune, we found the view of the lake was incredible, the waves roaring, the wind bending the beach grasses – a good place to let your imagination fly. In the distance and sitting offshore, the freighter Calumet (we think) waited for winds to subside before entering Ludington Harbor.
Numerous sculptures along the trail are located near the harbor at Waterfront Park and at the entrance to the harbor near the boat launch.
One favorite of mine, “Follow the Leader,” is a series of sculptures of children playing the childhood game. According to the tour guide, they are part of a sculpture gallery at Waterfront Park and the second installation in what has grown to 16 pieces of art along the Mason County Sculpture Trail. Created by Stanley Proctor, an empty rock in this sculpture encourages children to stand in a pose with the other figures.
Additional park favorites include “Carferries,” “Sportfishing” and “Spirit of Ludington,” all part of the Maritime Culture Trail.
During our previous trail adventures – Maritime, Barn Quilt, Agriculture and Lumber – we’ve encountered pieces of the Sculpture Trail, such as “Daedyl,” which my navigator directed me to as we returned home along the Quilt Trail.
“There’s a sculpture over by the college; let’s go find it before we head home, then you’ll have it for the Sculpture Trail,” my navigator offered, as we traveled the back roads home from Ludington.
West Shore Community College is at the intersection of Stiles and Sugargrove roads, east of Ludington, in a pleasant country setting. College roads curve around the main buildings. We had been to a couple hockey games there last winter and thought we knew our way around – sort of.
“It should be over by the arts building,” Jean said.
We circled around a couple times and finally parked at one end of a building for a walk around. At the opposite end of the building we found it and snapped a photo.
“Daedyl” is an abstract piece of sculpture, and I know little about abstract art. The tour guide enlightened us: “A resident of Mason County for 55 years, Manierre Dawson is remembered by local residents as a fruit farmer but is America’s first abstract artist. He was one of the first to develop a cubist style.” There’s more to the story of the sculpture and its artist, but I’ll leave it to the reader to discover.
One more sculpture, also on the Lumber Trail but left out of that narrative, is also on a back road. Found in the village of Fountain, this sculpture speaks to me as I was a horseman in my younger days. “Out of the Forest” depicts two finely-detailed draft horses pulling a huge log and represents the growth of area railroads, logging and lumber. Each Memorial Day weekend, Fountain features a horse-pulling contest that has continued for 50-plus years.
From here, Jean and I let the winds blow us back home to contemplate our final cultural trail story – the Music Trail – just in time to finish the year and appear in next month’s issue.
Follow the trails yourselves at masoncountyculture.com/trails.
Kevin Howell is a transplanted freelance writer from Indiana living in Mason County. He loves the Michigan woods, lakes and, especially, Michigan craft beers – not necessarily in that order. Contact him at kevin(at)ytci.com
