Visit West Beach, Indiana Dunes National Park, Indiana

Add to My List Check Off

West Beach, located adjacent to U.S. Route 12 and County Line Road, lies on the border of Gary and Portage, Indiana. It is a geographically separated section of the park that is preserved as a piece of public beach access and an example of the same theme of plant succession as is found in Cowles Bog. This section of the park displays most of the successive stages of Indiana Dunes biotic progression, from open beach sands to mature Eastern Black Oak forest. The 0.7-mile (1.1 km) West Beach Succession Trail opened in 2007 and features different stages of plant succession in the beach and inland dunes. Lifeguards are present from the Friday of Memorial Day through the Monday of Labor Day. Lifeguards are not present at other times of the year. Swim at your own risk. Rip currents and large waves can make swimming hazardous. Glass containers are prohibited on all beaches. Year round restrooms and potable water at the contact station. Seasonal restrooms and potable water at the picnic area from mid-May through mid-October. Bathhouse with showers and lockers is open seasonally. Parking lot has 596 spots and 20 buses and can fill up on holiday weekends. Lot can handle buses and RV's.

5.0 out of 5 Write a Review

No Ratings Yet

Flag as inappropriate ›