Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore ~ http://www.nps.gov/indu

The sounds of waves massaging the soft warm sand beaches of Lake Michigan, has it always been this way? What would the sands of time tell us if they could speak? Citizens holding signs, Politicians giving speeches, Industrialist demanding a decision, what was to become of this place? Would it be turned into an industrial complex with thousands of jobs and tax dollars for the surrounding communities? Could environmentalist convince congress to turn it into a national park? Politicians had a tough choice to make; a struggle ensued over who would control the southern shore of Lake Michigan.
In the past others have come to the southern shore of Lake Michigan. Joseph Bailly, Anders Kjellberg, Stephen Mather, Frank V. Dudley, Dorothy Buell and others discovered what the Potawatomis knew long ago; the dunes are more than just sand and beaches. A land with over 1400 different vascular plants species and are spread out over 15,000 acres of dunes, marshes, woodlands, river, and bog. Today with over 8,000 years of human history and thanks to the efforts of many dedicated Americans visitors are encouraged to walk the trails of the lakeshore.

Botanist Dr. Henry Chandler Cowles wrote, “The Indiana dunes are a common meeting ground of trees and wildflowers from all directions.” Today the dunes have become a common meeting ground for people from around the world who are discovering the many wonders of Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore.