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National park in Indiana, United States
Photo: Flickr user: Paul J Everett https://www.flickr.com/people/paul_everett82/, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Indiana Dunes National Park, in the northwestern part of the state, is the only national park in Indiana. It's popular for its big sand dunes and plentiful beaches on Lake Michigan, and for its easily accessible location near Chicago. The park is also home to a variety of ecosystems including swamps and forests, with diverse plants and wildlife.
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See five buildings, all from the Homes of Tomorrow Exhibition of the 1933 Century of Progress World's Fair which took place in Chicago. They were originally intended to display the future of housing, and today are private residences with nearby plaques.
The sole beach west of the Port of Indiana and its steel mills. It's right by Long Lake, and several nice, short trails through the woods. As it is the park's largest and most visited, it also has the most amenities.
Just west of the state park section of the shoreline.
Less than a half mile apart, Kemil is wheelchair-accessible.
Along with Kemil and Dunbar Beaches, Lake View is one of the most isolated from industrial vistas.
As it is far enough east, Central Beach is one of the frequently visited beaches, despite being not very easy to reach—nonetheless Mt Baldy probably has claim the title of most remote.
Hike over some dunes for spectacular views of Lake Michigan and--on a clear day--the Chicago Skyline
Challenge your calves and climb three separate dunes in the Indiana Dunes State Park: Mount Tom, Mount Holden, and Mont Jackson. Stop by the visitor center to get your completion prize.
The name of the park's highest dune, and given the height of the dunes around the beach, this beach is the most strenuous to reach. The views from the top of the "mountain" are quite nice, and reward the heavy breathing you'll do on the trail to the top. Don't let the fear-mongering signage dissuade you, though, the trek really is not too hard, as it is a gentle incline heading up. Walking in sand even on a slight incline, though, is a good deal harder than on solid ground. The drop from Mt Baldy to the beach is extreme, and goofing around on the steep slope is a bad idea—sand is soft, but you could pick up enough speed rolling down to seriously injure yourself. There is an alternate path further back along the Mount Baldy trail that will take you to the beach without the sharp incline. Mount Baldy is suffering from increasing erosion, in part due to off-trail hiking. Please only hike the main trail on Mount Baldy.
66 sites. All sites are first-come, first-served. The campground is fairly open with few trees between sites. There are two large modern bathhouses with showers and several pit-toilets scattered around. The dunes area is all sand and the campground is no exception. Grass is sparse in some areas and expect to get sand in everything. The campground is often full by the Friday before most summer weekends so it pays to arrive early to secure a site. Consists of two loops containing 66 camp-sites (53 conventional drive-in sites and 13 walk/carry-in sites). Four sites are wheelchair accessible (numbers 15, 30, 41 and 55). Each loop has modern restrooms and hot/cold showers. Some sites have limited recreational vehicle length. Convenience stores and a gas station are located 1/4 mile north of the campground at the intersection of U.S. Highway 12 and Broadway Avenue in the town of Beverly Shores.
By train
The Indiana Dunes are served by the South Shore Line from Chicago, Michigan City, and South Bend.
Most of the hiking trails are closed to bikes, but the Calumet Trail runs parallel to Dunes Highway and can be used to transit between some parts of the park.
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