Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (Part 2)

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

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

To learn more about her work, or to engage her as a speaker, go to 

http://www.laketrek.com/great-lakes-speaker/

With nights in the low 30s and high 20s, we gathered around a fire some nights. April even brought along some popcorn to pop over the fire. 

YUM!

The scenery was breathtaking at times, even for those in the group who had hiked here before.

The most stunning formation in this National Lakeshore is Chapel Rock (below and in video). 

This sandstone pedestal has been separated from the shoreline by erosion, but the lone pine tree on the formation still lives there, attached to the shoreline by long roots. 

This tree is over 200 years old.

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (Part 1)

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

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

To learn more about her work, or to engage her as a speaker, go to 

http://www.laketrek.com/great-lakes-speaker/

I met up with my hiking friends and headed to America's first designated National Lakeshore,

Pictured Rocks,

along the northern edge of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. 

Yes, it was snowy and chilly and exhilarating. 

Me, Zan, Julie and April

The Au Sable Lighthouse

Snowy campsite at Benchmark campground

There is a 12-mile stretch of beach along the lakeshore. We hiked several miles here at the edge of Lake Superior.

Lake Superior Rocks

Can you find me in this photo? 

Massive sandstone formations dominate the western portion of the lakeshore. It's difficult to get the scale of these formations until you find the person in the shot.

We hiked five days...more to come.

Post Most Viewed in 2010

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

Thank you all for reading my blog. It has now surpassed 150,000 page views!

Here is the most viewed post from 2010:

Lake Michigan Rocks!

I've always been a rock hound, and my Lake Trek gave me a golden opportunity to collect rocks from the entire shoreline of Lake Michigan.

The series of four 'waves' of glaciers that formed our Great Lakes dragged rocks from as far away as within the Arctic Circle and deposited them in our lake. You won't find this wide a variety of color and mineral composition anywhere else in the world.

In the video below, I've placed my collection of Lake Michigan rocks on a map of the lake.

Lake Michigan Rocks!

I've always been a rock hound, and my Lake Trek gave me a golden opportunity to collect rocks from the entire shoreline of Lake Michigan.

The series of four 'waves' of glaciers that formed our Great Lakes dragged rocks from as far away as within the Arctic Circle and deposited them in our lake. You won't find this wide a variety of color and mineral composition anywhere else in the world.

In the video below, I've placed my collection of Lake Michigan rocks on a map of the lake.