The Martin's Blog

9/9/2019 – Left Springfield at 2pm EST, arrived at the Visitor Center at 5:30 CST. Unfortunately, they were now on winter hours and closed at 5pm. The Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore was elevated to National Park status in 2019. The Dorothy Buell Memorial Visitor Center now serves as the NP Visitor Center. The NP runs for about 15miles on the south shore of Lake Michigan.

I started by driving to Mt Baldy at the eastern end of the park and hiking the trail to the beach

Note the Nuclear Power Plant on the left, near Michigan City IN

I next visited the 1933 Century of Progress Homes by Dunbar Beach

Armco-Ferro House

The House of Tomorrow – “America’s First Glass House”

The Florida Tropical House

South Shore Line RR Station, you can take the commuter train from Chicago to the Dunes!

Dunes Park RR Station

This is Porter Beach, which is adjacent to the Indiana Dunes State Park (now a part of the National Park). I believe this was the beach I first visited with my family and cousins in the late 1940s!

As you can see the sun was now down. Next stop Chicago.

I have visited here at least five times. The following are photos from a 1994 visit

Kate, Damir, Chad, Helen

Tom climbing Mt Tom (192ft) in Indiana Dunes State Park