Indiana Dunes with kids: which beach, which trail, what to bring

Two parks, one shoreline

There are two parks here and they are easy to confuse. Indiana Dunes National Park is the big federal one, with beaches and trails strung along the shore from Michigan City to Gary. Indiana Dunes State Park is a separate, older park run by the state, sitting inside the national park's boundary near Chesterton, with its own gate, its own fee and the famous dune climbs. Each charges a per-vehicle fee; an America the Beautiful pass covers the national park but not the state park. Both are worth it.

Which beach

Little kids: West Beach

About 35 minutes west, West Beach is the national park's most developed beach: lifeguards in summer, a bathhouse with real restrooms and showers, a big parking lot and a gentle sandy entry. It is the only Dunes beach we'd take a toddler to on a busy day. The Dune Succession Trail starts here too, a one-mile loop with a long wooden staircase up and over the dune that six-year-olds treat as a challenge and grandparents treat as a decision.

Shade and picnics: Lake View and Dunbar

Twenty minutes from the house, Lake View has a picnic shelter and restrooms on the bluff with a short path down to the sand, and Dunbar next door is similar and quieter. Neither has lifeguards. These are the beaches for a relaxed afternoon with a cooler, a frisbee and a kid who just wants to dig.

Quiet and close: Mount Baldy and Central Avenue

Mount Baldy, ten minutes from Beachwalk, has a short trail from the lot to a wide, usually uncrowded beach below the dune (the dune itself is closed except for ranger-led hikes). Central Avenue, a few minutes further, is another small-lot, small-crowd beach. Bring everything you need; there are no concessions.

Big kids: the state park

Indiana Dunes State Park, about 25 minutes, is the one with the 3 Dune Challenge: a 1.5-mile loop over the park's three tallest dunes, Mount Jackson, Mount Holden and Mount Tom, nearly 200 feet above the lake. Kids from about eight up love it, especially with the sticker from the Nature Center at the end. The beach below the pavilion is long and sandy with concessions in summer, and the campground loop roads are good for a bike ride.

Trails without the climb

• Chellberg Farm and Bailly Homestead (national park, near Porter): flat, shaded loops past a 1900s Swedish farmstead and a fur-trader's homestead. Two miles at a kid's pace, with a creek to look into.
• Great Marsh Trail: a short boardwalk-and-gravel walk through wetland near Beverly Shores. Herons and turtles, no sand in the shoes.
• The Indiana Dunes Visitor Center on State Road 49: pick up the Junior Ranger booklet here first. Completing it earns a badge from a ranger, which has motivated more than one reluctant hiker.

What to bring

• More water than seems reasonable. Sand radiates heat and the climbs are exposed.
• Shoes that can get sandy for the stairs and trails; bare feet for the beach only.
• Sunscreen, hats and a shade tent or umbrella for the beaches without trees (West Beach, the state park).
• Bug spray for the inland trails, especially Chellberg and the marsh.
• Cash or a card for the gates, and the pass if you have one.
• A change of clothes for the car. Every time.

Where to eat on the way back

Chesterton, the town next to the state park, has a walkable downtown with pizza, ice cream and the Saturday European Market in summer. Or skip it: Sandy Shores has the grill and the fire circle, and the pool at Beachwalk is the best place to wash off a dune. The Dunes and Harbor Country guide has the places, with addresses, and the treasure map pins them from the house.