Great Lakes Walk Anniversary

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

Five years ago today I completed my 1,000-mile hike exploring all five Great Lakes.

The yellow line in the map below traces the route of this adventure. I spent time on each Great Lake and also hiked some of the watery connections between the lakes.

The yellow route is my Great Lakes Walk

 Here are some highlights from this journey:

Pictured Rocks along Lake Superior

Hiking along limestone-strewn Lake Huron

Niagara Falls

St. Clair River and the Blue Water Bridge

Hiking along Lake Erie

Lake Huron

Lake Huron

Lake St. Clair

Hiking the Waterfront Trail along Lake Ontario

Group that hiked final miles with me to finish line of Niagara Falls

  I learned so much about our Great Lakes on this adventure. Each lake has a unique "personality." The geology differs in each basin. And each lake has unique conditions for aquatic life.

The full story of this walk is in my second book (also available as an audiobook):

Slowly I Turned...

Loreen Niewenhuis is an author, adventurer, and dynamic speaker. 

She has completed a trilogy of 1,000-mile adventures exploring the Great Lakes and has authored three books about these adventures: 

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] 

A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Island Adventure  [Long-listed for the Chautauqua Prize]

 

To learn more about her work, or to engage her as a speaker, go to http://www.laketrek.com/great-lakes-speaker/

Here's a look at Niagara Falls in motion:

 It is here that the merged waters from Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron and Erie flow north over the falls.

Our Great Lakes move water to the North Atlantic Ocean. 
These waters are on a journey.

A Look Back...

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

Three years ago today, I completed my
1000-MILE GREAT LAKES WALK

 in Niagara Falls, Ontario, along the Niagara River Recreational Trail. 

Hiking amidst the fall leaves

I hiked with a fantastic group of people who came to the falls to join me for the final miles of my adventure.

We had lovely weather the first day, hiking among the bright colors of fall.  Our break the first day was at a winery along the way. We stopped for wine and cheese. 

That's classy hiking!

My Mom and her friends, Niki and Peggy

Jan and Marlene

My sister (Leslie), Me, and my cousin (Milene)

Niagara River merging with Lake Ontario

Hikers Day 2

Overlooking the Niagara River

The Falls

Hikers celebrate the end of the hike

How time flies! 
Since the finale of this adventure, 
I have completed my third Great Lakes Adventure.

My books are available wherever books are sold, 
but I encourage you to make the choice 
to support your local indie bookstore.

My Great Lakes Trilogy

Great Lakes in Motion

The Great Lakes are constantly in motion.

Not only are they slowly moving water to the North Atlantic Ocean, there are also swirling currents within each lake.

Water moves around reefs, swirls around peninsulas, plunges over waterfalls and 

down rapids.

NOAA has developed a model to represent these unseen currents in the Great Lakes.

Go HERE to explore.

The Adventure Concludes!

The final 15 miles of my 
1000-MILE GREAT LAKES WALK

took place in Niagara Falls, Ontario, along the Niagara River Recreational Trail. 

On October 19-20, I hiked with a fantastic group of people who came to the falls 
to join me for the final miles of my adventure.

We had lovely weather the first day, hiking among the bright colors of fall.  Our break the first day was at a winery along the way. We stopped for wine and cheese. 

That's classy hiking!

My sister (Leslie), Me, and my cousin (Milene)

Hiking amidst the fall leaves

Niagara River merging with Lake Ontario

Hikers Day 1 at Brock's Monument

Hikers Day 2

Overlooking the Niagara River

Hikers celebrate the end of the hike

The Falls

I'd like to thank everyone who came to Niagara to celebrate the finale of my hike, people who have followed my adventure, and to all of you who care about our Great Lakes.

I will continue to blog about issues effecting our Great Lakes.

The book about this hike, 

A 1000-MILE GREAT LAKES WALK,

will be released in early 2013.

Please watch for it at your favorite independent bookstore, and watch the sidebar here for my upcoming book tour and speaking engagements. 

The Finale in Niagara.

The End of the hike is near!

(check out the details by clicking link above)

I'll hike the final 15 miles this Friday and Saturday (October 19 & 20) along the Niagara River Recreational Trail from 

Niagara-on-the-Lake 

to 

Niagara Falls!

These Boots are Made for Hiking!

I hiked the first 300 miles of my adventure in these 
Oregon PCT boots made by KEEN.  

The Oregon PCT boots in repose

As you can tell, they were quite comfortable!  

And they performed well on a variety of terrain.  

Erikson PCT boot by KEEN

  

For the next portion of my hike, there will be more rocks, so I am moving to this even sturdier boot, the Erickson PCT model by KEEN.


They have more leather and go a little higher on the ankle for support.  


Since this boot is constructed for more rugged conditions, I'm hoping they will take me all the way to the finish line in Niagara Falls.  We shall see...


*By the way, the finale of my 1000-mile Great Lakes hike will take place in Niagara Falls on the Canadian side of the river.  I will invite people to join me in Niagara, Ontario, to hike the final 15 miles with me along the 

Niagara River Recreational Trail.  

I am nailing down the details this month for the event which will include a hotel deal at the 

Sheraton on the Falls 

and celebration dinner (along with many other goodies!).  A shuttle will take hikers up to the city of Niagara-on-the-Lake which is located where the Niagara River empties into Lake Ontario.  From there, we will hike back to the falls over portions of a Friday and Saturday in mid-October.  


Details and dates are still in the process of getting nailed down.  I will send a mass e-mail out in the next few weeks with all of the particulars.  Hotel rooms and space at the dinner will be limited, so if you want to come, please watch for upcoming e-mails.  If you are NOT on my e-mail list and would like to be, please send an e-mail my way at Loreen@LakeTrek.com with "Updates" in the subject and I'll add you to my list.  

Please note that since this event takes place in Canada, 

you will need a passport or enhanced license in order to 

cross into Canada from the US.  

The Next Adventure!

Check out the new image at the top of this blog!

This is the route I will be following on my next adventure, a journey of over 1000-miles that will allow me to touch all five great lakes.

#1: I hike a portion of Ohio's northern edge beginning at Port Clinton, then will continue to do most of the edge of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. This will allow me to touch three Great Lakes: Erie, Huron and Michigan.

#2: I will do two sections of shoreline on Lake Superior including all of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (the longer highlighted part – which is part of the North Country Trail) and Estivant Pines Nature Sanctuary (the shorter highlighted part – which protects some of the last old-growth trees in Michigan, some as old as 600 years).

#3: Takes me along Canada’s shoreline on Lake Ontario. I will begin in Toronto and hike east to Sandbanks Park near where Lake Ontario egresses into the Saint Lawrence River.

#4: This is the two-day finale hiking from the shores of Lake Ontario to Niagara Falls along the Niagara River Recreational Trail. This will take place on a Friday-Saturday in October (dates being nailed down) and I’ll invite people to come and hike these last two days with me and to celebrate the end of my second 1000-mile adventure! I’m working on a deal for lodging and celebratory dinner, so watch for details! Also note that this will take place on the Canadian side of the river, so you will need a passport or enhanced driver’s license in order to cross the border into Canada.

If you haven’t already, please go ahead and “LIKE” my fan page to stay current on my writing and hiking and activism on behalf of our Great Lakes. And, if you'd like updates mailed to you, please shoot me an e-mail at Loreen@LakeTrek.com with the subject line: Updates!

Life should be an adventure!

Press Release link: http://prlog.org/11781680