GRAND HAVEN, Mich. — Dirk Wierenga from Grand Haven is setting out to make a documentary about rural America. His starting point will Sault Ste. Marie.
Wierenga is planning to travel about 1,000 miles over the course of 10 months. It's part of a project Wierenga and his company, Principia Media, are embarking on to highlight rural America.
"Some of the things that people need to talk about in rural America is that rural America produces 99 percent of the energy urbanites use," said Wierenga. "They produce 90 percent of the food that urbanites eat."
Wierenga will follow U.S. Route 2 from Sault Ste. Marie to Williston, North Dakota.
This isn't the first time he and the company have challenged themselves to something like this. Wierenga and his team have previously spent three years working on a project.
"Getting to meet people across the country and being able to tell their stories is really a lot of fun," said Wierenga. "I have been traveling for many, many years, so I have gotten to know a lot of people already. What I find is an authenticity that you don't find as much elsewhere. The people are extremely friendly. They are smart. They are survivors."
Wierenga will be posting about his travels on his Facebook page.
