In an unsuspecting workshop situated along Cherryland’s lines in Interlochen, you’ll find Captain Ryan Matuzak. He’s the captain of his family sportfishing business, and as of 2014, he jumped on board as captain of a new adventure—Stand Up For Great Lakes.

The nonprofit started without any real intentions of growing into what it’s become. Initially, it was just a group of friends who thought it would be cool to make the trek from Wisconsin to Michigan, across Lake Michigan, on stand-up paddleboards.

They reached out to Matuzak, who immediately warned them, “This is not amateur hour out there. There are some things I don’t think you understand about the lakes, and I’m going to help you.” That frank conversation and Matuzak’s expertise solidified his role as Stand Up for Great Lakes Safety Captain. He maps out routes and makes sure his paddlers are safe through high winds, massive waves, and cold nights. For the next year, Matuzak guided this ambitious group, helping it prepare for what would become one of many grueling, exciting, at times scary, and unbelievably rewarding journeys across Michigan’s Great Lakes.

The first paddle took place in 2015. It took the team 25 hours to paddle across 60 miles of open water. And it wasn’t always smooth sailing.

“A lot of things happened during the night. Some guys started going into hypothermia. We called the EMTs into the game, but nobody ever got off a board, though, which was unbelievable,” recalled Matuzak.

That’s just one of the many stories of treacherous waters, frigid temperatures, and close calls they experienced out on the big lakes. That first trek across Lake Michigan quickly turned into a goal to paddle across all five Great Lakes — raising money and awareness to protect the natural waterways we know and love.

With the rough seas came unbreakable friendships and incredible experiences. Memories to last a lifetime. From paddling under the Mackinac Bridge, to laying a wreath over the shipwreck of Edmund Fitzgerald and learning what it takes to dig deep and persevere.

Fast forward to 2021—and they’ve completed paddles across four of the five Great Lakes, raising tens of thousands of dollars for each trek. They’re currently planning and preparing in hopes of making their final, major paddle across Lake Ontario in 2022.

But the activism doesn’t stop when they’ve met their goal of crossing each Great Lake. Every year, Stand Up for Great Lakes hosts a clean up project on Torch Lake. They’ve started partnering on paddle projects with local students to raise money and awareness for Michigan’s fresh waterways—but also spark a passion in the next generation.

As the tides begin to change, Matuzak says the most important part of this adventure for him was, “Probably sharing it with others and sharing the need for volunteerism. It’s about volunteerism, it’s about the community, and it’s about the northern Michigan lifestyle that we love.”

Award-winning documentary crews tagged along to capture every exhilarating minute of these paddles.

To watch the Emmy winning documentary, Crossing Lake Superior, click here.

To watch Crossing Lake Erie, click here.

To watch A Journey of Passion: Crossing Lake Huron, click here.