On the Road

Loreen Niewenhuis is an author, adventurer, and Great Lakes speaker. She has completed a trilogy of 1,000-mile adventures exploring the Great Lakes and has written three books about the Great Lakes [A 1,000-Mile Walk on the Beach *a Heartland Indie Bestseller*, A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Walk *winner of the Great Lakes Great Reads Award*, and A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Island Adventure]. To learn more about her work, or to book her as a speaker, go to http://LakeTrek.com

This June I had some exciting speaking engagements around the state of Michigan.

I first spoke to over 60 people at the Farmington Hills Community Library:

The auditorium begins to fill for the event

Farmington Hills Public Library

 And I spoke at Michigan's oldest courthouse in Berrien Springs:

The courthouse is now a History Center.

The courthouse filled up to hear my presentation about the islands of the Great Lakes

Interesting exhibits at the History Center

And I was also the keynote speaker for the Elk-Skegemog Lake Association's annual meeting.

Elk Rapid's historic Township Hall

Quite a crowd!

I am currently beginning to book engagements for 2017.

Sinkholes and Walking Ferns

Loreen Niewenhuis is an author, adventurer, and Great Lakes speaker. She has completed a trilogy of 1,000-mile adventures exploring the Great Lakes and has written three books about the Great Lakes [A 1,000-Mile Walk on the Beach *a Heartland Indie Bestseller*, A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Walk *winner of the Great Lakes Great Reads Award*, and A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Island Adventure]. To learn more about her work, or to book her as a speaker, go to http://LakeTrek.com

During my speaking tour in the eastern U.P., I had time to do a quick hike near Cedarville.

A couple who attended my talk at the library told me that they had a sinkhole on their property. These form when limestone is slowly dissolved by water and this type of formation is called 
karst topography.

Sink hole in background

Maya the dog gives scale to this depression (note the stream of water disappearing in the middle of the sinkhole)

 Also on this property, there was an unusual plant, a "walking fern" in the genus Asplenium. This name comes from the way the plant propagates: new plants grow where the arching leaves touch the ground making it appear that the plant is "walking."

walking fern

This property was wonderful to explore.

Tree atop a limestone ledge