Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore

With the fall color past peak, we decide to take a weekend drive to Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore.  Our first stop is at the Visitor Center.  We watch a short (11 minute) film about the history of the dunes (Indiana Dunes State Park and the National Lakeshore).  The highest dunes are in the State Park (fee area).  We have about 1.5 hours of daylight left so we opt to skip the State Park and concentrate on the National Lakeshore.             

This is not your typical National Park/Lakeshore.  Private residences and businesses still exist within the park boundaries.  The movie we saw earlier talked about the struggle to save the dunes from development.  

We cross the Calumet Trail and stop at the Ridge Trail trailhead for a short hike. 

Ridge Trail

As we drive the Lake Michigan shoreline, the sun is hanging low in the western sky.  We stop and take a sunset walk on the beach and see a distant view of the Chicago skyline.

Lake Michigan w/Chicago skyline in distance

Lakeshore Road at Sunset

There are lots of hiking trails of various lengths ranging from easy strolls to more vigorous hikes.  Maybe next time we will check out the State Park …

For more information on Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, click on the following link:

NPS Indiana Dunes NLS

For information on Indiana Dunes State Park, click on the following link:

Indiana Dunes State Park