National Park Centennial

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/

On August 25, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the law establishing a new federal bureau, the National Parks Service (NPS). At that time there were 35 national parks and monuments. Today there are 59. The NPS is responsible for protecting and managing these national treasures.

Michigan is home to 5 of these parks.

Two are national lakeshores:

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore on Lake Superior

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore on Lake Michigan

One is a historic district on the Keweenaw Peninsula:

Map of National Historical Park on the Keweenaw

One is a battlefield near Monroe:

The site of a pivotal battle during the War of 1812

And the final one is Isle Royale, the second-largest island in the Great Lakes.

A shed moose antler on Isle Royale

This week marks the centennial of the NPS.

Happy 100th!

Enjoy and explore our National parks. 
Learn more HERE and HERE.

The War of 1812...and the Great Lakes?

While hiking the shores of the Great Lakes in 2012, 

I kept passing through areas affected by the War of 1812.

This war took place two centuries prior to my adventure.

While on my journeys, I am always looking to explore and learn more about the history of this region and these inland seas.

Sign at the River Raisin Battlefield in Monroe, MI

Monument to American soliders killed at or after the Battle at the River Raisin

Perry Memorial, Put-in-Bay, Lake Erie

Perry Memorial on South Bass Island

Monument to Major-General Brock

A monument to Brock's faithful horse, Alfred

In my upcoming book, 

A 1000-MILE GREAT LAKES WALK,

I'll not only take you along the shores of 

the five Great Lakes, 

I'll also illuminate the story of the War of 1812

and how it impacted the region.

And so much more will happen along the way...

 Many people don't realize that the British hoped to take and hold some of the unsettled land in the Great Lakes region. They took forts at Detroit and Mackinac Island, burned the fort in Chicago (Fort Dearborn), and waged war on Lake Erie.

The invincible British navy was first, well, "vinced," on Lake Erie.

The American commander, Commodore Perry, was the first to defeat and capture an entire British squadron of ships. 








And along the Canadian side of 
the Niagara River, there are monuments to another pivotal battle in the War of 1812.

And, of course, a statue to the British commander's faithful horse, Alfred.