GRAND HAVEN, Mich. — Haley Andrus knows Michigan beaches probably better than most.
She doesn’t live on the lake and isn’t even a frequent beach goer.
But when a random idea sparked in her head, she decided to pack her bag, her gear and set out on a journey.
“So I've backpacked to the coastline of the Lower Peninsula,” Haley Andrus said.
After nearly two months of planning, she started in the southeast corner, just north of Toledo. She then went up the thumb around the base of the Mackinac bridge and then down the west coast.
“It took me 67 walking days, walking 18 to 20 miles a day,” Andrus said.
“Some of those days got pretty long.”
Pretty long might be an understatement. The entire trip was over 1000 miles, and the trek definitely wasn’t all beachy.
“The first two weeks were rough,” Andrus said.
“I had terrible blisters, my legs were sore, my back hurt, and then sleeping on the ground and carrying 30 pounds every day isn't an easy thing to do.”
And what does one eat while lugging around your entire life for weeks?
“I ate Ramen noodles, mashed potatoes and I ate a Snickers bar almost every single night,” Andrus said.
A dream diet for any college kid, and necessary calories just to keep up with all the walking.
“I have strong legs,” Andrus said.
I'd add a strong mind, strong will and strong navigation skills. The journey took her through many obstacles and trials and even tearful calls home- but she persevered.
“I feel somewhat invincible, like I proved to myself that I can do hard things,” Andrus said.
“So yeah, I'm very proud.”
Haley is now planning a nearly 300 mile hike in Vermont and wants to also tackle the Upper Peninsula's coast which she thinks will be geographically more challenging.
