WHy Us
Provisioning for
water, trail, and curious minds
(That's Our whole business in one line.)
Woods & Waters — whether you found us with an ampersand (&) or spelled it out as Woods and Waters, you're in the right place. We're a small-group guided ecotour company and retail shop based in Cedarville, Michigan, in the Les Cheneaux Islands — 36 islands along Lake Huron in Michigan's eastern Upper Peninsula, just 30 minutes from the Mackinac Bridge and a short drive from Saint Ignace (pronounced ig-niss).
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The Les Cheneaux Islands are the unsung sister of Mackinac and Pictured Rocks. Quieter, less photographed, less traveled, but not a lesser experience. If, like the woman running this place, you consistently choose the less expected option — Big Wheel over Barbie, trumpet over flute, Latin over Spanish, boots over heels — you'll fit right in. Small tours, ability to ask questions, the kind of memory defining the whole reason you came. [More on choosing the road less taken →]​
Woods & Waters exists because we value playing outdoors and deepening understanding about where we play — including all the physical, social, psychological, and mental benefits that result from getting wet feet, soaking up nature, or feeling spent after any-sized adventure. We lead trips, share knowledge, fuel curiosity, and sell quality provisions to get you out the door — with the intent of being your awesome, trusted, and unbiased partner in human-powered outdoor adventures.
What we're about — and what makes us different
That understanding doesn't stop at the shoreline, and neither do we. Woods & Waters is a shop and guided-ecotour operation built on the idea that the best thing you can do with a place, or a question, is understand it. So alongside the paddles, the pedals, and the gear or apparel you'll need to get out there, we're curating a shelf of books that pick up the threads we talk about on the water and let you keep pulling them, wherever you are, long after the trip ends.
We got into this because we love being outside. Not in a bumper sticker way — in the way where you genuinely can't imagine doing anything else with your days. The Les Cheneaux Islands, the eastern UP shoreline, the Hiawatha National Forest, Lake Huron, Michigan, the Great Lakes region — this is where we live and work and play, and we never take that for granted.
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Woods & Waters exists to share it. Our goal is to be your partner in getting outside — not your boss, not a company that processes you through a checkout line and wishes you a nice day. Someone who listens to what you're actually looking for, makes thoughtful decisions on your behalf, and genuinely cares whether you had a good time.
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We work with all people — all abilities, all backgrounds, all experience levels, all configurations of who someone is and who they bring with them. We're not here to judge any of that. We're here to get you outside.
We're enthusiastic teachers. We love sharing what we know about this place — the history, the ecology, the birds, the wooden boats, the stories tucked into the channels. We love watching someone find their paddling rhythm for the first time. We love this work.
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We're also honest. We'll tell you when conditions aren't right, when a guided tour makes more sense than a rental, when the trip you're imagining isn't quite the right fit. We'd rather give you the right experience than the one that's easiest to sell.
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Woods & Waters is proud to be part of the communities of Hessel and Cedarville, the Les Cheneaux Islands, and the eastern Upper Peninsula. We're permitted by the US Forest Service to operate in the Hiawatha National Forest — a portion of every trip fee goes back to maintaining the public lands we use together. We take that seriously.​
Play outdoors. Build relationships. Welcome everyone. Keep learning.
Share what we know. Make good decisions. Give back to the places we love.
