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Contact: Bruce Rowe, 219-395-1609
Large waves kicked up by strong north winds early in the morning of June 1st washed away what little beach remained in front of Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore’s Lakeview picnic area. The storm left behind a steep drop off onto large boulders that have armored this portion of the shoreline dating back before the establishment of the national lakeshore. In response to these dangerous conditions, the National Park Service has closed the picnic area’s two beach access stairways. Despite the closure of the two stairways, the Lakeview picnic area and its parking spaces all remain safe and fully open to the public. In addition, there is a stairway approximately 50 yards west of Lakeview that remains open and leads to a stretch of usable beach. Lake Michigan’s water level has gone up approximately two feet within the last year. The higher lake level, in combination with recent storm waves, has resulted in erosion along the Lake Michigan shoreline. While visitors may find beaches narrower than they have become accustomed to in recent years, all 15-miles of beach within the national lakeshore remain open. For more information on beach access at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, contact the park’s information desk at 219-395-1882 or go to the web page at www.nps.gov/indu. Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore is part of the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 407 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov. |
Last updated: June 6, 2015