Shipping on the Great Lakes

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/

There are around 200 lake freighters moving goods and raw materials around our Great Lakes. 

Here's a moment along the St. Clair River from my second adventure

A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Walk.

Audiobook Release: A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Walk

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

Available now: the audiobook from my second Great Lakes Adventure!

A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Walk
This audiobook will take you along the shores of all five Great Lakes. 

Midwest Book Review said this about the book:
“What emerges is an unmistakable reverence for the beauty and tremendous legacy of this ancient water trail....For a wonderful mind- and soul-enlarging experience, read A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Walk.”

And now with the audiobook, you can listen to this amazing journey of my hike along the edges of our Great Lakes read by ME!

Download the new audiobook HERE.

_______________________________________

The first installment in this trilogy is also available as an audiobook. 

Here's a review from a listener:

"A beach book with substance"

What made the experience of listening to A 1000-Mile Walk on the Beach the most enjoyable?
I loved how the author would divert from the retelling of the journey to give facts about the history of each area, environmental concerns, and other information. It was done masterfully so as to not take away from the flow of the book. The narration was also wonderfully done.

What did you like best about this story?
I loved hearing about the history and the places. I also liked hearing about the current concerns due to industry's footprint in the area.

What about Loreen Niewenhuis’s performance did you like?
Her voice is soothing, and holds your interest. So much so that my four-year-old son insists on listening to the "lake book" at bedtime. It is hard to find a narrator that I enjoy and Loreen did a wonderful job narrating her own book. The only disappointment I have is that the rest of her Great Lakes treks are not available on Audible yet.

Any additional comments?
Read this book! I enjoyed it, and was impressed so much by Loreen's knowledge about environmental concerns and history in each area that I find myself hoping to steal away to one of her lectures next time we are visiting family in Michigan!

Purchase the audiobook HERE.

Second Anniversary of Great Lakes Walk

Two years ago, I completed my

1,000-Mile Great Lakes Walk 

at Niagara Falls.

The dramatic finish line

The final miles were along the Niagara River 

Many friends and family members hiked these final miles with me

Gorgeous fall hiking!

The enthusiastic hikers!

Now, two years later, I am on the cusp of completing my 

1,000-Mile Great Lakes ISLAND Adventure

on Mackinac Island.

I'll blog about that finale soon!

The Last Loop on my Book Tour

The South Haven Lighthouse

I had a wonderful time touring this year with my book:

A 1,000-MILE GREAT LAKES WALK

November found me traveling to South Haven for the "Women's Only Weekend" where I gave a presentation at the Michigan Maritime Museum.

Books and Boots at the Michigan Maritime Museum, South Haven

A packed house at the Michigan Maritime Museum

I also gave a talk in Plainfield, Michigan, just NE of Grand Rapids. There were nearly 100 seniors and other citizens from that community who came out to hear about my adventure!

The Senior Center in Plainfield, MI

My last appearance for 2013 was out in Saugatuck, Michigan. I took some time to get to the edge of Lake Michigan and to feel the power of 

the waves and wind!

Wild weather at Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan!

My book tour is taking shape for next year. I will have a limited touring schedule since I will be on my Great Lakes ISLAND Adventure most of the year, but I am currently booking engagements for April and May, 2014.

The Artist (and skull collector), Sally Thompson

Sally works in diverse media and many different subjects

I met Sally Thompson while on my 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Walk.

She helped me to navigate my way around the many inlets along the western edge of Lake Erie. She knows the area because she is an avid kayaker. 

Sally is also a talented artist. I was able to meet up with her this October and look through her artwork. I had purchased a barn drawing from her earlier, but had wanted to see more of her work in person.

These four "negative space" tree drawings by Sally look great in my house!

You can check out her artwork at her website:

http://SallyThompson.stepanic.net

Or in person at these galleries:
 Gallery 108

108 Park Place, Dundee, Michigan

or
The Hudson Gallery
5645 Main Street, Sylvania, OH

Author's New Title Indie-Only for Three Months

Shelf Awareness has written this article about my idea of pre-releasing my book to the indies!

Author's New Title Indie-Only for Three Months

Go Indie Bookstores!

Go Indie Bookstores!

[If you need help locating the indie bookstore nearest to you, go to Indiebound.org and just put in your zip code!

WHERE you buy your books is important!]

Tales from the Book Tour!

My name in lights!!

The book tour is taking me all over the Great Lakes region.

Earlier this week, I had two engagements on the same day!

There was an enthusiastic crowd at the Houghton Lake Public Library.  Houghton Lake is Michigan's largest inland lake and it (and the town) are named after Michigan's first geologist, 

Douglass Houghton.

Noontiders in Glen Arbor, Michigan

I also gave a lecture to a men's group, 

The Noontiders of Glen Arbor. 

Lecturing in Glen Arbor

Chatting with members of the Noontiders after giving my lecture

Flanked by Frank (L) and Peter (R) at Noontiders

I'm having a fantastic time on 

my book tour and 

I hope to see YOU along the way!

Walk with Me...

This video takes you along on my Great Lakes Walk with a boot-on-the-trail perspective!

This should give you a sense of the variation of the shorelines of the five Great Lakes.

In this video, you'll see bits of each lake and the finale at Niagara Falls, ON, Canada.

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. 

Handfuls of Lake Huron

Here is a glimpse at Lake Huron
by the handful.

Stones from the Presque Isle area

A mix of stones and shells on Lake Huron's shoreline

And then there's the PUDDINGSTONE.

This is the common name given to this distinctive conglomerate stone (Jasper Conglomerate) comprised of a mix of colorful pebbles embedded in a finer-grained matrix.

Early British settlers to the Great Lakes region were reminded of their Christmas pudding when they saw these rocks, 

hence the name.

Drummond Island puddingstone

The Drummond Puddingstone is especially colorful.

While formed mainly in the northern regions of Lake Huron, ice sheets have moved these distinctive rocks as far south as Ohio and Kentucky.

Puddingstone flipside

There was a band of quartz in this specimen.

And, of course, the zebra mussel has populated Lake Huron and shells can be found along the shoreline.

Lake Superior is the only lake to not be 

overwhelmed by these invasive mussels. 

There is less dissolved calcium in Lake Superior available to these mussels, and they need calcium in order to create their shells. 

Zebra Mussel shells

Mighty Mac

I was looking through my photos from my 

1000-Mile Great Lakes Walk

and came across these summertime shots of

the Mighty Mac Bridge.

This bridge stitches together the two peninsulas

of the state of Michigan.

It spans the gap, leaping over the 

Straits of Mackinac.

It lofts steel and stone over water,

...the towers hike up the road in the middle to allow lake freighters to slip underneath.

Walking, Walking...and more Walking

I've been working on the manuscript for my book as the year comes to a close. 

And I've been reliving my time walking the edges of our Great Lakes.

Taking a break!

I covered 1,004 miles total in 76 days!

Wow...I wore that gray shirt a LOT...

Through all sorts of terrain, 

and in all sorts of weather.

This was a little tough on the ankles!

Walking in the rain

Sunrise on Lake Huron

The book about my adventure 

will be released in 2013, 

so watch for

A 1000-MILE GREAT LAKES WALK

at your favorite bookstore soon!