Heather Johnson Durocher

Michigan

Writer and Editor at Freelance

Writer ~ Mother ~ Michigan Lover ~ Runner ~ Editor ~ Podcast Host ~ Triathlete ~ Happy + Grateful Human ~ Founder of https://t.co/zNwH3onYu3

Articles

There is nowhere like London

4 days ago | movingthrough.substack.com | Heather Johnson Durocher

Nearly a week after returning from my writing retreat in England, I am still processing this experience and how I can already feel it has changed me. I have many observations and thoughts I want to share with you all, and while I don’t intend to give a play-by-play of each day I was in the UK, I am interested in taking notice of certain ideas and themes taking shape and bubbling up for me.
Betsie Valley, Chain of Lakes trails receive Pure Michigan honor

6 days ago | recordpatriot.com | Heather Johnson Durocher

The Betsie Valley Trail, a Benzie County rails-to-trails pathway founded in 1992, features a scenic section of the former Ann Arbor Railroad originally running from Toledo to Frankfort-Elberta. Courtesy of Friends of the Betsie Valley TrailTwo trails in the northern Lower Peninsula are recipients of the 2025 Pure Michigan Trail designation, an annual recognition that spotlights some of the state’s best trail experiences.
The adventure has begun

2 weeks ago | movingthrough.substack.com | Heather Johnson Durocher

I wouldn’t have trusted myself to write to you yesterday, but this morning I feel like a new woman. A solid nine hours of sleep will do that, particularly after many hours of delayed flights, overnight travel, airplane food and the dizzying experience of navigating public transportation in a different country. Moving Through is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Chasing sunrises, navigating loss, finding a path forward

3 weeks ago | movingthrough.substack.com | Heather Johnson Durocher

Current time: 0:00 / Total time: -57:12Audio playback is not supported on your browser. Please upgrade. Truthfully, I’ve been wanting to get to know today’s podcast guest—Jennifer Symons—for some time now. Jennifer, 37, and I live in the same area, in Michigan’s northern lower peninsula. We’re also both passionate about spending time in nature and believe deeply in the power of moving our bodies—Jennifer is a runner, hiker, walker and triathlete—and what it means for our mental health.
Things to Love: Sorta-Spring Edition

1 month ago | movingthrough.substack.com | Heather Johnson Durocher

Midwesterners, especially those of us who live in the northernmost states, will tell you that this time of year is tough mentally. And OK, as I get older, maybe physically, too. We’re hearty people—we embrace all four seasons, and we’ve endured March blizzards and even snowfall in May (it happens)—and yet once we’ve gotten even one day of warm breezes and sightings of bright flowers pushing through the frozen ground, we’re ready. Let’s wrap it up already, winter.
A stylish midlife woman

1 month ago | movingthrough.substack.com | Heather Johnson Durocher

"As a woman gets older, it's more about style than fashion. A woman knowing herself more and more, and looking for new things, is getting into her own personal style, being more than just a fashion addict. I'm interested in that." —Nicolas GhesquièreThe second time it happened, I felt like crying. My closet shelving—piled high with sweatshirts and sweaters and jeans, and sitting above a long row of hanging shirts, skirts, dresses and jackets—suddenly collapsed. For the second time in two weeks.
It's good to have obsessions

1 month ago | movingthrough.substack.com | Heather Johnson Durocher

Hello! I’m in an especially good mood writing this, no doubt because it’s all sun and blue skies outside and I spent the morning sweating through a tough Pilates class and pushing myself to keep that momentum going with a run on clear streets with a stop midway through at West Bay. It’s just 36 degrees out but standing on the icy shoreline, my face to the sun, I could almost imagine it was a summer day when I closed my eyes.
Heather Johnson Durocher: An enduring cabin-camping tradition at Wilderness State Park

1 month ago | record-eagle.com | Heather Johnson Durocher

Buckled into the backseat of his parents’ vehicle, alongside his older brother Tristan, Aaron Jones waited for the I-75 sights rushing past outside the windshield that would signify his family’s proximity to what they’d been waiting for all year — a 10-day stay at Wilderness State Park at the tip of the Lower Peninsula, near the Mackinac Bridge.
Keep your head up, keep your heart strong

2 months ago | movingthrough.substack.com | Heather Johnson Durocher

Emma was making her way back to Michigan from NYC—flying Delta, navigating a number of weather- and mechanical-related flight delays—when news of a plane crashing and flipping over at Toronto’s airport popped up on my phone screen. Logically, I knew she wasn’t on that flight. Still, my worrying heart thumped in my chest as I tapped on the news article to learn more.
Are you paying enough attention to your life?

2 months ago | movingthrough.substack.com | Heather Johnson Durocher

I’m actually quite tall for a hobbitare the words in colorful lettering on the front of the green sweatshirt worn by the woman sitting across from me at the coffee shop. I notice this right away as she slides into her booth and shrugs off her jacket. I’m on my phone talking with Jenn, our second call of the day, and I’ve happened to look up and in the woman’s direction. I smile reading the words.