Frequently Asked Questions

From Memorial Day to Labor Day, visitors can call the beach parking hotline at 219-395-1003 to hear an automated message with parking availability.

The National Park’s 15 miles of beaches are accessible from the following beach parking lots, most of which you can access from U.S. Highway 12.

• West Beach—North on North County Line Road. West Beach has about 600 parking spaces with lockers and showers; other lots have limited parking.
• Portage Lakefront and Riverwalk—from U.S. Highway 12, take IN 249 south and follow signs.
• Porter Beach—Wabash Avenue and Johnson Beach Road.
• Kemil Beach—North end of East State Park Road.
• Dunbar Beach—Lake Front Drive and Dunbar Avenue.
• Lake View Beach—Lake Front Drive and Broadway Street.
• Central Avenue Beach—North end of Central Avenue.
• Mount Baldy Beach—Just east of the U.S. Highway 12 and Beverly Drive intersection.

Check our beach opening map or follow the Indiana Dunes Facebook page for the most up-to-date information.

From Memorial Day to Labor Day, visitors can call the beach parking hotline at 219-395-1003 to hear an automated message with parking availability at each beach. The Indiana Dunes State Park has the most parking spaces of all the beaches. Due to its popularity, it often fills to capacity early on hot summer days. An alternative is West Beach in the Indiana Dunes National Park, which has about 600 parking spots and rarely fills to capacity.

• Pets are permitted and must stay on a leash at all times (six feet or less).
• Responsible alcohol use is permitted. No glass containers.
• Wood and charcoal fires are prohibited on the beach. West Beach and Lake View Beach do have dedicated grills in their picnic areas.
• The removal of natural items such as rocks, shells, and fossils is prohibited.

The park does not have a boat launch, and personal motorized watercraft, dune buggies, and ATVs are strictly prohibited. Non-motorized watercraft such as kayaks and canoes can be launched from the Portage Lakefront & Riverwalk.

The Lake Michigan Water Trail runs along the shore of Lake Michigan. Launch points in the Indiana Dunes area include Central Avenue Beach, Dunbar Beach, the west side of Indiana Dunes State Park, Kemil Beach, Lake View Beach, Portage Lakefront & Riverwalk, Porter Beach, and West Beach.

Power boaters must stay 500 feet from marked swimming areas, even when beaching. Some nearby communities offer boat launches. The National Park has no boat launches. Personal watercraft are prohibited.

No, except for West Beach, when lifeguards are present. The National Park does not close its beaches, regardless of water conditions; however, when lifeguards are stationed at West Beach from Memorial Day to Labor Day, the National Park will close the West Beach swim area when high waves or high E. coli levels are present. Lifeguards are not stationed at any other location within the National Park.

Call 219-926-7561 followed by prompt #2 for information regarding E. coli levels.

There are 50 miles of hiking in 14 trail systems with varying difficulty throughout the National Park. Portage Lakefront and Riverwalk is a paved accessible trail where people can enjoy Lake Michigan views. The Calumet Dunes Trail is also paved. The Great Marsh and Heron Rookery Trails are flat.

The Glenwood Dunes Trail is the only equestrian trail at the National Park. Horseback riding is prohibited on all roads. There is no horse rental concession. The trail is open to horses from March 16 through December 14 unless there is sufficient snow cover for cross-country skiing. In the parking lot and picnic area, all horse excrement must be bagged, removed from the area, and disposed of appropriately. The parking lot is large enough for horse trailers.

E-bikes are allowed where traditional bikes are allowed. Except where the use of motorized vehicles is permitted, using the electric motor to move an e-bike without pedaling is prohibited.

Hiking, cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing are popular. Visitors must bring their own snowshoes and cross-country skis.

Glenwood Dunes Trail has a 6.8-mile trail with a series of interconnecting loops through gently rolling wooded dunes. The 2.9-mile Tolleston Dunes trail is a good choice for advanced skiers. There are some difficult hills that can be tricky to navigate. A 4-6 inch snow base is recommended. Trails are not groomed.

Snowmobiling is not permitted.

Sledding is not permitted except at West Beach within the designated area.

Shelf ice often forms along the edge of Lake Michigan during periods of cold weather. Don’t be fooled! Despite its appearance, the shelf ice is not solid and should not be walked on. Due to the way shelf ice is formed, numerous air pockets exist that cannot be easily seen. It also can be difficult to tell where the beach ends and where the ice starts. Don’t walk on the shelf ice! A person applying even a small amount of weight on shelf ice can easily fall through into frigid water that can quickly kill. Please enjoy the beautiful and unique ice formations from the safety of solid ground.

There are no lodging facilities or restaurants inside the park, but there are many nearby. See listings for nearby lodging and restaurants.

Yes, the Dunewood Campground is run by the National Park and is located just off of U.S. Highway 12 in the Town of Beverly Shores. The campground is open from April 1 through November 1. The following are details pertaining to the National Park campground:

Facilities

• 67 campsites.
• Sites 1-54 are conventional drive-in sites for RVs or tents. RV length is limited in some sites.
• Sites 55-67 are walk-in sites for tent camping only.
• Sites 15, 30, 41, and 55 are wheelchair-accessible.
• Restrooms and showers are located in the center of each loop.
• No electric or water hookups at individual sites. There is potable water located at several locations in each loop.
• The campground does have an RV dump station.

Fees

• There is a $25.00 per night camping fee (expanded amenity fee).
• All sites are reservable online starting six months in advance of the check-in date.
• Sites are reservable beginning on November 15 for the following camping season.
• There is a 50 percent discount for the following America the Beautiful—The National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands passes: Senior Annual, Senior Lifetime, and Access Passes.
• There is no discount for the following America the Beautiful—The National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands passes: Annual (non-senior), Military, Volunteer, and 4th Grade.

Attractions/Services

• Lake View Beach on Lake Michigan is located 1.5 miles north of the campground.
• Do NOT park in the Town of Beverly Shores’ beach parking lot, located just to the east of the Lake View lot. You will get ticketed. The town is very strict.
• A gas station/convenience store is located ¼ mile north of the campground at the intersection of U.S. Highway 12 and Broadway Avenue.
• The Beverly Shores South Shore Railroad station with passenger service to Chicago and South Bend is located on Broadway Avenue, ¼ mile north of the campground.

Registration Information

• All sites are reservable online starting six months in advance of the check-in date. Sites are reservable beginning on November 15 for the following camping season.
• The check-out time is noon. New check-ins cannot occupy your site until noon unless the site is vacant.

Camping Rules

• Stays are limited to 14 days in a 30-day period.
• Quiet hours are daily, 10pm to 6am. Please be considerate of others.
• All tents and equipment must be set up on the camping pad.
• There is a maximum of eight people per site.
• All vehicles and RV campers must remain entirely on the pavement.
• Bikes can be walked to the walk-in sites.
• Pets must be caged, be in a tent or RV, or be on a leash (maximum length of six feet) at all times.
• The National Park suggests that visitors use firewood from local suppliers to prevent the spread of invasive insects. There is a general store near the Dunewood Campground that sells firewood, and there is another firewood seller near the campground.

Covered picnic shelters with tables are located at the following locations, along with modern restrooms. Cooking fires are permitted in the provided grills or an approved carry-in grill. An approved grill is a noncombustible container with an enclosed bottom and enclosed sides with a minimum depth of two inches. Charcoal must be cooled and safely disposed of in a noncombustible container or removed from the area.

• West Beach picnic shelters (reservable six months in advance online).
  • Eight non-electric shelters: $25 per day.
• Chellberg Farm picnic shelters (reservable six months in advance online).
  • Two non-electric shelters: $25 per day.
  • One shelter with electricity: $50 per day.
• Tremont picnic shelters (first come, first served).
• Glenwood Dunes picnic shelters (first come, first served).
• Lake View Beach picnic shelters (first come, first served).

Picnic tables are also provided at the Tolleston Dunes Overlook, Central Avenue Beach parking lot, Porter Beach parking lot, Pinhook Bog parking lot, Indiana Dunes Visitor Center, and the Paul H. Douglas Center. Note that cooking fires are not permitted at these locations.

There are no restaurants inside the park. West Beach has a concession stand inside the bathhouse seasonally. Dig the Dunes Trail Stop operates out of the concession window at Portage Lakefront & Riverwalk and serves pizza, snacks, wine, and beer.

The National Park offers nearly 500 free public programs a year covering a wide range of interests and abilities. Upcoming programming can be found by calling or visiting the Indiana Dunes Visitor Center or online at the National Parks’ website and Facebook page.

Teachers and youth group leaders should call Christy Gerlach at 219-395-1885 to arrange for a free ranger-led program. These programs are conducted at the park’s Paul H. Douglas Center for Environmental Education located in Gary/Miller, Indiana, and focus on the park’s resource issues.

Yes! Stop by the Indiana Dunes Visitor Center or Paul H. Douglas Center for Environmental Education for information and program materials. The Junior Ranger book can also be downloaded online. Other junior ranger programs are offered at special events. All programs are free. Children completing the junior ranger program earn a Junior Ranger badge or sticker.

The National Park has many ways to volunteer. Click here to learn more.

• A Drop-In Volunteering Program is available. The National Park has drop-in volunteer projects on the third Saturday of every month.
• Trash Trekkers, our litter clean-up program, is available every day. Just drop by the Indiana Dunes Visitor Center or Paul H. Douglas Center for Environmental Education to get your trash bag and head out to the park. Once you fill your bag, return to the Visitor Center and receive a free Indiana Dunes water bottle as a reward for your service.
• The Indiana Dunes Visitor Center also has volunteer opportunities. Email the visitor center’s Operations Director at sandy@indianadunes.com to learn more.

Bailly Homestead and Chellberg Farm is a great place for both adults and children. The site includes an 1820s fur trading post and a 1900-era Swedish farmstead. Seasonally, farm animals inhabit the barn. Hiking trails of various lengths are available. The Maple Sugar Festival and Apple Festival take place there in the fall.

The five homes are all located along Lake Front Drive in Beverly Shores and are within a block of each other. Interpretative signs along the road. Private families or individuals lease the homes and rehabilitate them, so please do not trespass on their properties. A tour of the homes takes place the last week of September. Tickets typically go on sale in August and sell out quickly.

• 15,348 acres (2019).
• 15 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline.
• 50 miles of hiking trails.
• 37 miles of multi-use biking trails.
• 6.8 miles of equestrian trails.

• 2,134,285 visitors (2019).
• Approximately 60 percent of visitors come from outside Indiana.

• It is the fourth most biodiverse national park (1,960 species of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and vascular plants).
  • 1. The Smoky Mountains, 2. Grand Canyon, 3. Yosemite
• There are four National Natural Landmarks
  • Pinhook Bog, Cowles Bog, Hoosier Prairie, Dunes Nature Preserve.
• One National Historic Landmark
  • Bailly Homestead.
• There are more than 50 structures on or eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.
• Fens, bogs, marshes, pannes, creeks, woodlands, savannas, prairies, dunes, and beaches.
• More than 225 known archeological sites represent 10,000 years of Native American use, the American fur trade, and Swedish immigration.
• There are 46 species of mammals, 18 species of amphibians, 23 species of reptiles, 71 species of fish, and 60 species of butterflies.
• There are more than 1,400 species of ferns and flowering plants, 28 species of orchids (more native orchid species than the state of Hawaii).
• There are more than 350 species of birds that have been seen within the park (top five of all national parks).
• At least 30 percent of Indiana’s listed rare, threatened, endangered, and special concern plant species have populations within the park.
• The park shows the industrial juxtaposition of natural preservation and heavy industry. It is one of the few urban parks in the nation. The Indiana Dunes is a natural oasis tucked between industry. Near one of the top metropolitan areas, it is a gateway national park for the Midwest.

• Congress authorized the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore on November 5, 1966.
• There have been four land expansions (1976, 1980, 1986, 1992).
• Congress authorized the park’s name change from Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore to Indiana Dunes National Park on February 15, 2019.
• Indiana Dunes National Park is the closest national park to Chicago, Indianapolis, Detroit, and Milwaukee. It is closer to Detroit than Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore.
• Over 30 million people live within a three-hour drive of the park.
• The South Shore Commuter Railroad has stops in the National Park: Miller, Ogden Dunes, Dune Park, and Beverly Shores.
• The park is located very close to Interstates 65, 80, 90, and 94 as well as U.S. Highways 12 and 20.
• The park has land in LaPorte, Porter, and Lake counties and within 15 cities and towns.

The purpose of the Indiana Dunes National Park is to preserve, restore, and protect the outstanding ecological and biological diversity along with the geological features that characterize the southern shore of Lake Michigan. Also, it provides access for a large diverse population to experience natural, scenic open spaces with recreational, scientific, and historic features alongside inspirational and educational opportunities.

• Call the Indiana Dunes Visitor Center at 219-395-1882.
• Visit the National Park’s website or Facebook page.
• When visiting the park, stop by the Indiana Dunes Visitor Center to learn more.

From Memorial Day to Labor Day, visitors can call the beach parking hotline at 219-395-1003 to hear an automated message with parking availability at each beach. The Indiana Dunes State Park has the most parking spaces of all the beaches. Due to its popularity, it often fills to capacity early on hot summer days. An alternative is West Beach in the Indiana Dunes National Park, which has about 600 parking spots and rarely fills to capacity.

If dangerous rip currents or high E. coli levels are present, Indiana Dunes State Park will bar visitors from entering the water, although they can still enjoy the beach and trails. Signs alerting the public about closures are placed at the main gate at 11am on the day of the closure—that is the time closure decisions are made.

In addition, the park advises people to visit ripcurrents.noaa.gov for more information on rip currents and a local beach forecast map for rip current conditions along Lake Michigan and to visit in.gov and click on BeachGuard Online Monitoring Systems for E. coli closures and advisories. The nearby National Park also has an automated message visitors can access by calling 219-926-7561, followed by prompt #2 for information regarding E. coli levels.

The State Park only allows grilling at the pavilion in the grills provided. Grilling on the beach is not permitted.

Trails through the State Park vary in difficulty. The park has 16.5 miles of trails and is home to Mt. Tom, which is the tallest sand dune in Indiana, towering 192 feet above Lake Michigan. Mt. Tom is part of The 3 Dune Challenge, a 1.5-mile trail with 552 vertical feet to climb.

Kayaks and canoes can be put in at the far west side of the park. Personal motorized watercraft are not permitted.

No.

Metal detectors are allowed on the beach from September to May, with written permission from the property manager.

Yes, the State Park has a year-round campground with full electric and water hookups. All sites are reservable on the following website. The Indiana Dunes State Park Campground is very popular, and sites must be reserved months in advance for the summer season. There is a campground store. Camping elsewhere in the park is prohibited.

There are no lodging facilities in the State Park, but there are many options available nearby.

The state has a new policy that states campers and picnickers who live in Indiana can bring their own firewood as long as the bark has been removed (since the larvae of invasive insects live under the bark.) Federal quarantines prevent people from other states from bringing their own firewood to Indiana.

Firewood can also be brought in if it is purchased from a store and has a USDA compliance stamp; if it is purchased from a local firewood vendor with a state compliance stamp; if it is kiln-dried scrap lumber; or if it is purchased from an on-site vendor.

Regardless of where it is obtained, people should burn all of the wood at their campsite and not leave it for the next camper. Visit DNR’s website for more information.

No. Limbs, brush, and wood help rebuild the natural humus.

There are no restaurants inside the park. Various food trucks are on-site between 11am and 6pm during the summer.

The State Park offers programs seven days a week in the summer and on weekends the rest of the year. A schedule is posted at the State Park. Programs are subject to change due to weather or other safety concerns. For more information or to arrange a private program for a group, call 219-926-1390.

The State Park has a Pin Program, and people can earn a pin by completing different activities. For more information, call 219-926-1390.

People interested in volunteering can visit the DNR’s website or call 219-926-1390 for more information. The tasks volunteers can do include pulling unwanted plants, beach cleanups, and weekend Nature Center staffing.

• 2,182 acres (2019).
• Three miles of beach shore
• More than 16 miles of hiking trails.

The Dunes Nature Preserve is 1,530 acres and is located within the boundaries of the State Park.

• Several areas with “living” or “moving” dunes are slowly being blown inland, burying forests as they go. A prime example can be seen on Trail 9.
• “Tree graveyards” can be seen in the Big Blowout on Trail 10.
• The State Park and surrounding areas are renowned throughout the Midwest for their birding opportunities. A birding tower is just west of the pavilion.