Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore
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| Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore | |
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| IUCN Category V (Protected Landscape/Seascape) | |
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| Location: | Northern Indiana, USA |
| Nearest city: | Michigan City, Indiana |
| Coordinates: | |
| Area: | 15,067 acres (60.97 km²) |
| Established: | November 5, 1966 |
| Total Visitation: | 2,127,336 (in 2005) |
| Governing body: | National Park Service |
Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore is a U.S. national lakeshore located in northwest Indiana. The national lakeshore runs for nearly 25 miles (40 km) along the southern shore of Lake Michigan, from Michigan City, Indiana on the east to Gary, Indiana on the west. The park contains approximately 15,000 acres (61 km²). A part of this area, 2,182 acres (9 km²) is located in Indiana Dunes State Park and managed by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore was authorized by Congress in 1966.
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[edit] Lakeshore activities
The park contains 15 miles (24 km) of beaches, as well as sand dunes, bogs, marshes, swamps, fens, prairies, rivers, oak savannas, and woodland forests. The park is also noted for its singing sands. More than 350 species of birds have been observed in the park. It has one of the most diverse plant communities of any unit in the U.S. National Park System with 1418 vascular plant species including 90 threatened or endangered ones. The Indiana Dunes area is unique in that it contains both arctic and boreal plants (such as the bearberry) alongside desert plants (such as the prickly pear cactus).
First-time visitors to the Lakeshore often go to the Dorothy Buell Memorial Visitor Center at U.S. Highway 12 and Kemil Road, near Beverly Shores, Indiana. The center offers standard visitor-center amenities, including a video, brochures, hands-on exhibits, and a gift shop. It is free to the general public.
The park provides opportunities for bird watching, camping, 45 miles (72 km) of hiking, fishing, swimming, horseback riding, and cross-country skiing. The park had more than 2 million visits in 2005.
Rules state not to feed any of the wildlife, including seagulls, deer, or raccoons.
[edit] Lakeshore history
The Indiana Dunes area first came to prominence in 1899 when Henry Cowles did some of the pioneering work in American plant ecology there. Despite attempts to protect the area from threats such as the nearby Gary steel mills led by groups such as the Prairie Club of Chicago, the area continued to be exploited. The tallest dune in Indiana, the 200 foot (60 m) high Hoosier Slide, was hauled away and turned into glass by Pittsburgh Plate Glass and canning jars by Ball Brothers.
In 1926, part of the area became the Indiana Dunes State Park. Lobbying continued to expand the area and in 1963, the Kennedy Compromise linked the construction of the Port of Indiana to the development of a National Lakeshore. The Lakeshore was created in 1966 and expanded in 1976, 1980, 1986 and 1992.
[edit] Lakeshore landmarks
[edit] Cowles Bog
Cowles Bog, a National Natural Landmark, is a fen wetland named in honor of biologist and ecologist Henry Cowles. Located south and west of Dune Acres, Indiana, Cowles Bog is the sole remaining remnant of the Central Dunes where Cowles performed his pioneering field studies of plant succession and species diversity. A National Lakeshore trail runs from Mineral Springs Road into Cowles Bog.
[edit] Hoosier Prairie
Hoosier Prairie, a National Natural Landmark, is a 430-acre (1.7 km²) tallgrass prairie adjacent to Griffith, Indiana. It is a geographically isolated unit of the Lakeshore, owned and maintained by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources as a state nature preserve. 574 separate species of plants have been observed growing in this patch of prairie, or more than 1 species per acre.
[edit] Mount Baldy
Mount Baldy is a sand dune located west of Michigan City, Indiana. At 123 feet tall, it is the tallest sand dune on the southern shore of Lake Michigan. It is a wandering dune that moves or shifts every year, and so is called a "living dune." Mount Baldy is accessible from U.S. Route 12 (also known as Dunes Highway) between the town of Pines and the western border of Michigan City. Visitors can hike up the dune and from the top, on a clear day, can view Chicago's skyline and the south shore. North of Mount Baldy is a swimming beach (no lifeguards).
[edit] Pinhook Bog
Pinhook Bog, a National Natural Landmark, is a geographically isolated unit of the National Lakeshore. The quaking bog is located near U.S. Highway 421 approxiamtely 9 miles (14 km) south of Michigan City. The bog formed from a postglacial kettle moraine left behind about 14,000 years before the present by the melting of the ice sheet during the end of the Wisconsin glaciation. The acidic bog is noted for pitcher plants and other wetland species. Access to the bog is restricted to ranger-led guided tours.
[edit] External links
