We are excited to announce that Stand Up For Great Lakes will be traveling the entire Chain of Lakes Water Trail, from Six-Mile Lake to the Elk Rapids Dam, to raise money and awareness for the Chain of Lakes Water Trail and Paddle Antrim.
Joe Lorenz, Kwin Morris and Jeff Guy will represent Stand Up For Great Lakes, traveling 60 miles on paddle boards through the Chain of Lakes, which is expected to take about 20 hours. Stand Up For Great Lakes is most well-known for their crossing of the Great Lakes. Their first crossing was Lake Michigan in 2015, a 60-mile and just under 25-hour journey in 38-degree water. They raised $10,000 for the Great Lakes Alliance. In June 2017 they crossed Lake Huron and raised $7,000 for Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Their 90-mile paddle journey took over 28 hours to complete. Last summer they paddled across Lake Superior in 21 hours. Their 60-mile trip began at Sinclair Cove, Ontario and ended at Whitefish Point, Michigan and raised $15,000 for the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum. Their fourth journey was a 70-mile Lake Erie crossing that raised 17,000 for the Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research.
The Chain of Lakes Water Trail paddle deviates from their typical Great Lakes crossing but it will still bring challenges to the group as they make their journey. “You’ll have a current, boat traffic and a route that changes north to south several times,” says Kwin Morris. “We’re comfortable in 2-3 foot waves, but we want to avoid larger waves as much as possible.”
“We are extremely excited to have Stand Up For Great Lakes paddling the Chain of Lakes Water Trail, we love their mission and enthusiasm for keeping our lakes pristine and are grateful that they have chosen to benefit Paddle Antrim and raise awareness of the Chain of Lakes Water Trail,” said Paddle Antrim Executive Director, Deana Jerdee.
For more information, visit StandUpForGreatLakes.com and follow the team on Facebook.com/StandUpForGreatLakes and on Instagram.com/StandUpForGreatLakes. Watch the award-winning documentary about their Lake Superior Crossing at https://youtu.be/4MxhGhwzwYc.