If you have a short amount of time available for this park, this is your guide to 4 fun hours in Indiana Dunes National Park! We stopped on our way from the very interesting (still under development) Pullman National Historic Site to Cuyahoga Valley National Park (see our post here!) and had just 4 hours to spend and wanted to use it wisely! We left with mixed feelings about the Park, but if you are coming from Chicago you can catch the train and be here fairly quickly without driving!
4 Fun Hours in Indiana Dunes National Park
So… I need to say this first – Indiana Dunes National Park was visited to check a box. You know, the one that says “Visited!” We, unfortunately, arrived on a weekend when the adjacent Indiana Dunes State Park was packed and made traffic a complete disaster. Everywhere we went the crowds had came out of Chicago and Indiana and descended on this area. As a result, we didn’t leave impressed. Parking lots were full, traffic management and signage were poor, and that resulted in stress and frustration, which are awful ways to experience a national park!
So, I’m sure someone out there will challenge us and say this is deserving of the full national park status rather than the national lakeshore it held until February 2019, but I’m going to need some strong arguments sent my way to believe it. The challenge with Indiana Dunes is that the park it wraps around a very popular state park, a huge steel mill, a power plant, and the Port of Indiana. It feels very, well, industrial to be a national park! I appreciate the diversity and protection of the dunes, just struggle with its’ classification as a national park.
All that being said, we spent a few hours at the park amidst the crowds and have a highlight to share. Would we go again? At this point, honestly, no. There are simply better beaches and more scenic areas to enjoy along the coasts of the Great Lakes. We also had a long drive ahead of us and a pup with, so some options weren’t available for us on this trip as there were many areas that were not dog-friendly.
West Beach
Our primary stop was at West Beach, which has a large pay parking lot and beach area, as well as a dog-friendly beach section that we did not make it out to see. The trail was short, paved, and a large bathhouse building had restrooms, vending machines and concessions stand, and picnic areas. The parking lot is large and the Dune Succession Trail is a spot to stretch your legs and explore. There is also a good-sized beach and you can cool off in Lake Michigan!
Century of Progress Homes
One item that I learned about after we left is the Century of Progress Homes in the eastern portion of the park. This would have been an interesting stop so long as you aren’t battling the traffic we ran into! The homes date back to the 1933 Worlds Fair in Chicago and are open for guided tours just once per year as they are private homes leased to individuals who commit to their upkeep. You can drive by them, but there is no place for parking. You could swing by to see them in your 4 fun hours in Indiana Dunes so long as you don’t spend too much time at the beach!
A national park? Yes…it now is. One of our favorites or a must see destination? Nope. But, you can have 4 fun hours in Indiana Dunes National Park!
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