Tannery Bay

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

Tanneries (places that cure hides into useable leather) use a lot of water in the tanning process, so historically they have been located near bodies of water. 

There was once a tannery on the shores of White Lake in NW Michigan (the towns of Whitehall and Montague are on the shores of this inland lake).

A developer has been trying to build condos on the old tannery site for years. It took time to do the clean-up on the site, then it took time to get the money together to fund the project.
He named the development "Tannery Bay."

Discarded signs for the development 

 Some of the machinery from the tannery still sits on the shoreline here:

Huge tumbling drums where the hides were mixed with chemicals

Told you they were huge...

 Some of the details of the tumbling drums: 

Inside one of the tannery drums (through a spider web)

Equipment from the tannery

 Discarded bricks

Discarded equipment

 Tanneries were responsible for a lot of chemical pollution both in small lakes like White Lake, and also in the Great Lakes (White Lake drains directly into Lake Michigan).

Restoration of White River in NW Michigan

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

After my presentation in Montague, Michigan the library had arranged for an interpretive walk along the White River.

The White River as it approaches White Lake

Jeff Auch (former executive director of the Muskegon Conservation District) led the walk. Funding from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) helped restore wetlands, exhume materials from the historic city dump, and plant native plants in the area. 

Jeff Auch stands on clear evidence of the lumber industry in Montague

Jeff points out where the old city dump used to be

Wetlands are a natural cleaning area for our waters and are vital for maintaining the health of the Great Lakes. White River flows into White Lake which flows directly into Lake Michigan.

Japanese Knotweed is an aggressive invasive plant found near these wetlands

As it matures, the stems resemble bamboo

White River Lighthouse

While in Montague, Michigan on my book tour, I had time to tour the White River Lighthouse situated on the channel where the White river merges with Lake Michigan.

White River Lighthouse, built in 1876

It's always exciting to climb the tower steps

Classic "lighthouse library" that could be swapped between lighthouses

4th order Fresnel lens

View from the tower out to Lake Michigan

This wooden prow from a timber schooner circa 1870s sits on the grounds of the lighthouse

Revisiting the Lake Trek: Segment 4

This segment spanned the 75 miles between Grand Haven and Ludington, Michigan.

I was joined along the way by my friend, Mary, and for the last two days by Leslie and Milene (my sister and cousin).

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
Sign up to be a subscriber on YouTube and you'll get an e-mail when I upload a new video.

Walk with me:

Segment 4, Day 2 Muskegon->Montague 12 miles

High of 67 and foggy.

My friend, Mary Vermeulen, was able to join me for Day 2. We began in Muskegon and traveled through the fog to just shy of the lighthouse on
White Lake (which is between the cities of Whitehall and Montague).

The fog horn was sounding as we walked the channel and out to the beach at Muskegon State Park. Muskegon has done a wonderful job of setting aside its lakeshore for all to enjoy. South of Lake Muskegon, there is a long stretch of park, and north is the Muskegon State Park.

Mary packed us a gourmet lunch.

It was a little eerie to walk and watch the trees and dunes reveal themselves out of the mist. It wasn't too cold, but we did hit a thick patch in a cooler spot which left us with condensed fog droplets covering our clothing and, especially, my glasses.

The shoreline was impassable just north of Duck Lake, so we had to double back and go up to a road. The lake is high this year, so there have been several places which are currently underwater which were not just last year. We were just 1 mile south of the boat launch into White Lake when Mary's husband and girls (Dave, Anneke, and Abby) caught up to us on the road.

Strangely, by hiking the 100 yards inland, then 30 feet up some stairs to the road, we left the fog behind, down on the lake. It was a completely different weather day up on the road, sunny with no fog.

After a foggy, long walk, it was great to stop in at the Book Nook & Java Shop in Montague (hot chai tea, PLEASE!).