Indiana Dunes National Park Mount Baldy - Nature preserve in Michigan City - 187 Rice St, USA

Absolutely lovely park. Met Forest Ranger Sue, and she went out of her way to share details about the park, trails, and some great advice while visiting for the day. She hooked us up with an amazing RV spot for the day. Note: Parking here is very limited and very busy. Even for a cloudy ⛅️ day. There are only three RV spots. This nation park allows dogs. No grills or open fires are allowed.

Short hike from the parking lot to the beach. Less than 1 mile round-trip. Elevation change with some sandy terrain. The beach is really nice. You've probably already noted that the trail to Mount Baldy is closed. But still so.e wonderful views. Either a nice diversion on your visit or a spot to go swim.

This part of the world is full of surprises. We were greeted and educated by park ranger Gen. He was able to help us maximize our adventure during our visit with just a few suggestions. I loved the experiences at the campground. The sites are more close quarters than anticipated, a weird train noise at night but the facilities were top tier which made the experience close to what I consider a luxury experience comparatively to other National park facilities. It was a great experience and would definitely visit again!

Great trail, with a fantastic overview of Lake Michigan. There were several trails leading down to the beach to pick from. Waterfall and mountain hiking are one thing but hiking a sand dune is a totally different beast. This was at the Mt Baldy area!

Great place to stop and check out. Mt. Baldy is very impressive. The beach was nice and empty. Literally nobody was there around noon on a Thursday. Given the size of the sand dunes you can expect to see bigger waves here than over by the lighthouse on washington beach be aware there is no lifeguards at this beach and caution should be taken. The hike to the beach is definitely worth it .

Really cool hike to the beach with the massive sand dune right next to you. It’s a quick hike from the parking lot to the beach where you can get some great pictures. I recommend if you are in the area.

The trail to the peak was closed for habitat restoration, but the trail to the beach was only about a third of a mile and fairly flat. Worth the view at the end and the beach is much less crowded than west beach or the state park because of the longer walk.

There is a decent amount of parking here but this place is very popular so be prepared. There are restrooms at the trailhead as well and even a vending machine but it was shut down when we visited in Sept 2021 (Covid ? related?). We made the whole .25 mile trip-out and back- with no shoes on - we took ours off- and it is a very easy trek to the overlook. The view from the crest of the trail is amazing and the decent to the beach is very very steep and super fun to run down. (maybe 50 feet incline) However there is a looming powerplant cooling tower to the east which is just gross to see. Lots of folks chilling on the beach and a good number of kids climbing the dunes that say DO NOT CLIMB all over the place.