Indiana Dunes National Park
Home of the Karner Blue Butterfly
Comprised of more than 15,000 acres with vast stretches woodlands (look for the rare and getting rarer Karner Blue Butterfly alighting on colorful lupines), eight beaches and the tallest sand dune in the state, the 153-foot Mt. Baldy, the lakeshore attracts 1.8 million people each year.
The park, ranking 7th among all the national parks in the U.S. in plant diversity, has more than 1,135 native plant species.
Check out their website for the many programs they offers and information about their trails.
Take time to climb to the top of the dunes, explore Pinhook Bog the state's only true bog, wander along pathways through the woods and swim in the waters of Lake Michigan.
Chellberg Farm & Bailly Homestead
Chellberg Farm, once a Swedish settlement and now with its costumed interpreters and hardworking horses pulling plows through the fields, is one of two historic settlements. The other is Bailly Homestead where visitors can help farm workers feed the animals to get a feel of what life was like in Northwest Indiana back in the day.
Also here are a collection of homes that were shown at the 1933 World’s Fair in Chicago including House of Tomorrow.