Shut Down Line 5!

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/

I was honored to take part in the 

Pipe Out Paddle Protest 

yesterday on the Straits of Mackinac.

Kayaks are 'smudged' using smoke from burning sage

Kayakers and a few stand up paddle boarders gathered near the Mackinac Bridge to call for the shut down of Enbridge Line 5 that is submerged in the water here between Michigan's upper and lower peninsulas.   

This event was organized by Jannan J. Cornstalk and there were many tribal members at the event. 

Blessing the water ceremony

"Water is Life!" was the call of the day

Jannan J. Cornstalk, event organizer

 Two tribal canoes led the protest.

Tribal canoe

Paddling on the Straits

Flotilla of around 50 kayaks

 The pipeline underneath the water here is 65 years old and is well past its safe lifespan. It is time to decommission this pipeline. 

The clouds moved in as the flotilla headed back to shore

Several tribal members and politicians spoke abut the need to retire Line 5

 Thank you to the tribes and especially Jannan J. Cornstalk for organizing this event.

Learn more about Enbridge Line 5 that runs under the water in the Straits of Mackinac by viewing this movie:  https://youtu.be/ViYpuMZXdzM 

A GRAND Finale

On October 26, over 40 friends and family and followers of my adventures gathered on 

Mackinac Island for the Grand Finale of my 

1000-Mile Great Lakes ISLAND Adventure.

We had a gorgeous day for the hike 

Hiking final miles with Stephanie "Stew" Lyon 

Over 25 people hiked the final miles of this adventure on Mackinac Island.

 I brought along the walking stick carved for me by Bette Hartig of Big Rapids, Michigan. It was an honor to hike the final miles of my final adventure with this custom walking stick.

Hikers ready to head out

Milene, Leslie, Marlene and Theresa stand and wave to the crowd (photo by Shelly Kehrle-Sulser) 

The final steps up to the Grand Hotel (photo by Shelly Kehrle-Sulser)

Giving a short talk before dinner (photo by Shelly Kehrle-Sulser)

Revisiting the Lake Trek: Segment 7

This segment spanned the 161 miles between Mackinaw City and Escanaba, Michigan (I walked the bridge later, on the Labor Day Bridge Walk). This was the longest segment of the Lake Trek in both days (10) and miles (161).

I walked this segment alone, but was shadowed by my brother, Phil, who would drop me off at the beginning of the day, then pick me up 15-20 miles further along the lakeshore at the end of each day.

I walked the wide beaches near St. Ignace and Manistique and scaled the natural limestone walls that appeared in between. Much of the lakeshore was studded with limestone boulders or paved with a limestone shelf that seemed to lift from the water. It was rough going for much of the way, wilderness and rugged landscape. By the end of this segment, I had to retire my boots and break in a new pair on the next segment.

Note: You may want to press the 'play' button, then pause it and let it completely load before resuming play. This will allow it to play smoothly.

You can find all videos from the Lake Trek on YouTube at: www.YouTube.com/lniewenhuis