The Hiawatha Paddling Festival

Advancing the theme "Celebrating Nature & Paddling", the Les Cheneaux Islands Community and Woods & Water Ecotours are beginning a new paddling festival in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Sponsors anticipate great opportunities for learning with well-known professional instructors facilitating the event. Activities are open to families and paddlers at all levels of experience. The Hiawatha Paddling Festival will take place September 14th through the 16th of 2007.

Setting - The Hiawatha Paddling Festival will be held at Cedar Campus on Lake Huron in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The campus encompasses 500 acres of woodlands and six miles of Lake Huron shoreline. Operated by the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, Cedar Campus offers many different levels of accommodation from rustic camping to resort style lodging. The popular conference center will provide significant facilities to support a successful festival experience with classroom sessions, lodging and meals will be provided for participants at the campus. The Les Cheneaux Island archipelago is known for its wooded shorelines and natural assets. The Les Cheneaux Island Community takes in 12 miles of Lake Huron shoreline and encompasses the two villages of Cedarville and Hessel. The region is noted for providing excellent tourism support and marina services.

Program – Four focus areas are currently identified. A tentative schedule is posted on the festival website.

• Recreational Kayaking and Canoeing – Appropriate watercraft use, paddle strokes and effective rescues
• Family Paddling – Skill building sessions in paddle strokes, effective rescues, group dynamics and towing
• Beginning Coastal Kayaking – Stroke, bracing and turning skills, group rescues, rolling and boat handling skills
• Dry-land Topics – Navigational skills, marine weather, visual distress signals, choosing the right boat, appropriate gear and paddling opportunities

Staff – An impressive staff has been assembled for the first Hiawatha Paddling Festival. Sponsors anticipate additional quality staff members as the festival approaches in September and schedule is finalized.

• Jessie Hadley - ACA Instructor: Owner of Woods & Water Ecotours in the Les Cheneaux Islands and one of the festival organizers
• Lori Stegmier - ACA Instructor: Instructor with backcountry and wilderness kayaking experience. Lori enjoys working with beginners on the basics of kayaking
• Belinda Lee - ACA Instructor: Instructor with symposium experience and involvement in the Becoming an Outdoor Women Program. Belinda believes kayaking is a great sport for all of us
• Michael Gray - ACA Instructor: Professional kayak guide with experience in waters of Alaska, New Zealand and Belize. Michael has many experiences to share with festival students
• Bill Kinjornski - Canoe instructor for the Hiawatha Paddling Festival
• Kimberli Bindschatel - Nature Presenter: Author of Whisper in the Woods Nature Journal. Kimberli finds inspiration in nature and shares what it can offer students
• Dr. Dave Ewert - Nature Presenter: Director of Conservation Science for the Great Lakes Program of the Nature Conservancy. Dave brings to the festival a sharing of his extensive experience coastline and island protection in the Great Lakes.

The Hiawatha Paddling Festival in Michigan's Upper Peninsula represents only one of many paddling opportunities available in the northern reaches of the state. Writer Evelyn Kanter provides more detail in the article Kayak or Canoe in Michigan on the waters near Traverse City on Michigan's northwest coast.

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