The autumn colors have a been slow in coming here, and not very dramatic this year. I took a chance (well, I took Chance, and I took an opportunity) to head to Indiana Dunes National Park to see if any colors could be found there. The Paul Douglas trail is in the westernmost part of the park, and starts just a couple hundred yards past a tattoo shop and vacant stores in Gary. However, you’re quickly in oak savannas, beaver lodges, sand dunes, swells, ponds, and eventually the trail opens up on Lake Michigan. I shared a hike there last December on a snowy morning. As the sun rose Thursday, magical autumn foliage spread over the forest floor.
Soon enough the sun was getting up over the ancient dunes and providing warm light across the forest.
The sun lit up a beaver lodge in a pond in an interdune swale. One of the first white settlers in the area built a trading post for products such as beaver pelts. The animals were eliminated soon enough, but beaver have returned, and one swam across the pond as we watched.
Across the pond an oak glowed in the new day’s light.
The trail then comes up to the Grand Calumet River.
When we crossed the small bridge over the river, a flock of ducks took off, but three large birds remained. The family of Mute Swans—two adults and a juvenile—kept their distance as we walked along river’s edge.
Finally, a large marsh and grassland are between the two final dunes before you get to the lake.
Chance was happy to rest on the beach before heading back.
On the two mile return, we enjoyed the plants still glowing in the low autumn sun.
Back at the Paul Douglas Learning Center, Chance got a treat from a ranger, who recommended a couple more trails with good fall color. If you’re in the area and up for a trip there this weekend, you might try Dunes Ridge Trail or Cowles Bog. Also, on Sunday at noon, there will be a ranger presentation and hike about Native American settlements in the area. Or enjoy a scene like this on the Paul Douglas Trail.
