The Best Hiking Trails in Indiana

Paired with Trail 10, Trail 2 is debatably one of the most relaxing and scenic hikes in Indiana Dunes State Park. This easy 3-mile hike through the marsh includes two boardwalks and a spectacular selection of early spring flowers and ferns....

The Dune Ridge Trail offers expansive views of the Great Marsh, an incredibly diverse area that contributes to the park's title as "one of the top five most biologically diverse of all the national parks....

The Calumet Dunes Trail is one of the easiest short hikes in Indiana Dunes National Park. According to the park, "the lake has slowly receded over time, forming three major parallel dune ridges: Glenwood (640' above sea level), Calumet (620' above sea level) and Tolleston (605' above sea level)....

The Great Marsh Trail is an easy hike featured for its diversity of wildlife across "the largest interdunal wetland in the Lake Michigan watershed." The park notes how "flocks of coots, mallards, and wood ducks now glide over the wetland's surface," while "kingfishers, tree swallows, and rusty blackbirds rest during migration....

Trail 10 is one of the longer hikes in Indiana Dunes State Park, first wandering through serene forests and along a boardwalk before returning along the shores of Lake Michigan. Along the way, you will pass through stands of white pine and lush forests lined with summer wildflowers, plus a "tree graveyard" in Big Blowout....

This hiking-only trail system "reveals the rich natural diversity that has drawn people to this area for over 10,000 years," according to the [NPS](https://www.nps.gov/indu/planyourvisit/bc16.htm). Easy-to-moderate in difficulty, this hike takes a couple of hours to complete and offers stops at the historic Bailly Homestead, Chellberg Farm, and Mnoké Prairie....

Named after the late ecologist and "father of plant ecology in North America" Dr. Henry Cowles, this hike showcases the plant diversity that helped Indiana Dunes earn the designation of a National Natural Landmark in the 1960s....

Glenwood Dunes Trail is unique and extensive network of trail in Indiana Dunes National Park. Instead of one loop or out-and-back pathway, the area hosts an elaborate network of trail with "loops ranging from less than a mile to nearly 15 miles," according to the park....

The Tolleston Dunes Trail is a moderate 3-mile hike that "winds amid 4,700 year-old sand dunes that were formed when Lake Michigan's water level was 25 feet higher than today," according to the park....

The West Beach Trails are a multi-faceted trail system with "varied hiking experiences for those wanting a leisurely stroll through a flat oak savanna or a strenuous dune climb up steep stairs....