A workshop designed to unite Eastern Upper Peninsula businesses in promoting nature-based tourism under the banner, “The Treat Waters,” will be held in St. Ignace Thursday, November 10, from 8:30 a.m. to noon at the Econo Lodge Inn & Suites on US-2. Organizers seek to bring more tourists into the area by focusing on the unique natural features provided by the close proximity of Lakes Michigan, Huron, and Superior.

Following the session in St. Ignace, a second workshop will be held in Sault Ste. Marie at the Best Western in the I-75 business spur. The meeting will be begin at 1 p.m. and end at 4:30 p.m. November 10.

For businesses farther west, a third seminar will be held Friday, November 11, at the AmericInn in Munising. The meeting will begin at 9 a.m. and end at 12:30 p.m.

The Great Waters project is designed to serve visitors with specific interests in such things as lighthouses, but who are open to other outdoor activities, such as exploring shipwrecks or bird watching, said Linda Hudson, committee chair for the workshop. The concept promotes nature tourism by streamlining interests, focusing travelers on particular nature spots, and linking these spots and the people who visit them to businesses through brochures and a Web site.

Under nature-based tourism, visitors pass through interesting natural places purely for enjoyment’s sake. Nature tourism focuses on ecological patterns and natural events and is conducted in a way that protects the natural places visited, as well as the human communities nearby. Visitors have a low impact on the sites, thus keeping the areas visited unspoiled for future generations.

Ms. Hudson is a member of the Eastern Upper Peninsula Nature Tourism Alliance (EUPNTA), which is a collaboration of five of the easternmost counties in the Upper Peninsula. The Alliance is comprised of tourism professionals, conservation groups, regional, local and tribal governments, non-profit partners, public land managers, and hundreds of U.P. businesses all working together to develop an experiential tourism product.TTThis “product” does more than simply show off unique places, Ms. Hudson said. It educates tourists about the locations themselves, why certain areas were settled, and how communities evolved, while focusing on the unique aspects of the natural world which surround them.

It’s called nature-based tourism, but it is intended to include history, culture, with nature as the platform on which everything stands.

“For example,” she said, “if you go to Cedarville Bay, you see a lot of reeds. This type of program would explain that these reeds are part of a rare Great Lakes marsh ecosystem which supports unique birds, fish, and wildlife.” EEEUPNTA focuses on the nature, history, and culture of the EUP, Ms. Hudson added. The goal of the Alliance is to increase entrepreneurial opportunities, creating jobs and markets for local products by enhancing the traditional tourism industry.

Marketing EUP destinations together under The Great Waters project will help visitors understand links between areas such as Pictured Rocks and the Soo Locks by bringing attention to the Lake Superior Trail, Ms. Hudson said. It does the same with the Lake Huron Trail and the Lake Michigan Trail, which travels along the lake before turning north and connecting to Seney Wildlife Refuge. At some point, Mrs. Hudson said, she would like to add the St. Mary’s River to the list and create an official touring loop.

The Great Waters connects approximately 35 sites, and trail guides employed by EUPNTA will be part of The Great Waters project, providing a way to enhance tourists’ outdoor experiences at their chosen locations.

According to Ms. Hudson, the initiative is driven by the realization that the EUP is the only place in the world where such great and varied bodies of water meet, a region with beautiful natural areas as well as a rich history.

“Water, trees, and history can be found in other places,” she said, “but this is the only place that has such a powerful combination.”

The Great Waters project connects its various trails by established themes. In brochures, interpreted walks, and information on the Web site, tourists can explore The Lake Huron Trail theme, for example, which is based on “sheltered bays and ancient paths.” The Lake Huron Trail theme focuses on voyageurs, Native American history, and scientific information concerning glaciers, Ms. Hudson said.

The Lake Michigan Trail theme will be based on “windswept dunes” and “hidden lakes.” The Lake Superior Trail, a maritime theme, will be based on “rugged shores and falling water,” she added.

Key to the project is The Great Waters Web site, which sets itself aside from other tourism-based sites by keeping strictly to these themes, promoting local businesses and artists, and keeping to a strong conservation ethic.

“Through this project,” Ms. Hudson said, “we are trying to help build an economy compatible with the place we live.”

At the upcoming meeting, organizers will provide business operators with trail maps they can give to tourists. The Great Waters organization will also offer a 70-page trail guide detailing activities to attract new travelers. The meeting will discuss ways to lengthen the stays of tourists and ways to get new businesses into the fold.

At the workshop, board members will explain how businesses can be linked to, or listed on, The Great Waters Web site.

BrightBridge Studios created the Great Waters site, which is found at www.greatwaters.net.

At the workshop, Jon Roth, principal of BrightBridge Studios, will discuss current trends in electronic marketing that uses the Internet, e-mail, and mobile telephones.MMMr. Roth will provide business representatives with ways to manage Web sites, and explain how to develop site content.

There will be two other seminars to promote The Great Waters initiative.

Registration for the event costs $35 per person. Additional members of a business can attend at a reduced rate of $15 per person.

Interested parties can call the Sault Area Chamber of Commerce for more information at (906) 632-3301.