We travel so much, that sometimes I struggle to keep everything straight in my mind. I am much more likely to remember moments and then work to place them in time and location. Several of my most cherished are from our trip to the Indiana Dunes State Park and Lake Michigan.

We drove up for a relatively short trip over an extended weekend, with our two dogs. We don’t often get to travel to truly new places with our dogs, and it has been a long time since we took a non-backcountry trip with them by ourselves. Since discovering mountain biking usually the dogs tag along on group bike trips. I love traveling with my dogs. Despite Ripley’s carsickness and resulting human stress, I always feel better when my dogs are with me. This trip was extremely dog friendly, we never had to leave them in the car while we ran into a restaurant or went for a ride or a hike.

Off To a Bad Start

The trip did not start out well. The weather was terrible, and our first choice of campsite left much to be desired. We were the only tent campers in the whole park and our view consisted of rows and rows of permanently established mobile homes. The weather was so bad that the tent attempted to transform to a kite and we all had to just sit back in the car for a while. The campground had lost power. We understand you cannot control nature, but this also meant they locked all the facilities. In addition, the road was closed due to a downed tree and they would not let anyone leave the campground, even after the tree was cleared. We were stranded without access to running water or a toilet- and I am fine with primitive situations, but if I had tried to find a tree to utilize as cover, I would have been in someone’s “yard.” We got up first thing and tried our hand at the state run campground that has a first come, first serve policy.

Best Campground Ever.

We struck gold. Dunewood Campground was beautiful, wooded, and each site was relatively private. It also boasts the best campground bathing and restroom facilities I have ever encountered. The showers were individual rooms made of beautiful wood, with benches and sinks and mirrors all your own— oh, and hot water and steady pressure. After my first shower, I declared I could live there forever. While I usually prefer a more primitive camping experience, I have to say this was very high quality car camping. We would have stayed here originally but since it was first come, first serve we couldn’t get a site the night before since we arrived late in the evening.

The Three Dunes Challenge

After securing the campsite first thing that morning, we headed to the Indiana Dunes State Park, and realized our youngest dog, Ripley, had never really seen sand. She pounced and ran, and play bowed her way up the first dune with glee. The rain was not secluded to our previous night’s accommodations, so the dunes were packed in. Later we learned this made the Indiana Three Dune Challenge much easier. We easily hiked up all three dunes, and in fact, the most challenging part of the first day was the wooden stairs leading away from the first dune due to our dog’s nerves. We hiked down to the dog beach, through what seemed very much like the treelined trails I am used to-with the exception that the ground was sand instead of packed clay and dirt. At the beach we experienced the joy of watching Rocky run into the waves and chase his tennis ball into the lake before laying down and letting the water creep over him, and watching Ripley pounce and run from the waves. The lake seemed to stretch out forever, and seemed more like an ocean skyline.

Dog Friendly Lunch and Swamp Lands

That afternoon we ventured into Michigan City to Bridges Waterside Grille.  We enjoyed lunch while the dogs rested in the shade, and the other guests remarked how cute they are. We walked the dogs through the outlet mall, and through the park. That evening we drove through swamp lands, adding another ecosystem to those we had encountered on this diverse trip). We arrived to another section of the waterfront. As we drove through the swamp Rocky let his head rest on the window seal and the wind blow through his ears. I was almost as relaxed as he was. We played on another beach and took note of the interesting architecture of the lake houses. That night we cooked on the campfire, enjoyed the stars, and slept well.

The Real Challenge

The following day we enjoyed more dunes, and began to realize how climbing a dune can be challenging. Climbing hills became much harder with the sand dry. We encountered one that had to be steeper than a 45 degree angle at Warren Dunes State Park. For every step I took up, I slid three feet backward. Kids were playing on the dunes all around us-some sledding from the very top, others struggling to climb and erupting in laughter as they lost footing and rolled down the hill. Ripley jumped and pulled at the end of her leash. Apparently this was a job for four feet, not two. The view from the top was amazing. Standing at the edge, my eye level was over the tree.  Only a foot from the edge the hill you had just climbed to reach the top disappeared from view. We found our way to yet another beach, played, and hiked, and returned to the big hill to slide our way down. (There may still be sand in my hiking boots.)

Dog Friendly Town

We took in a drive in movie that night (at a dog friendly drive-in). Rocky and Ripley laid down and were quiet the entire four hours at the drive-in, probably due to having hiked all day. During our final day we explored St. Joseph, Michigan. The town had a cute shopping district adjacent to the pier with a large play area, walk up pizza stand, and the Silver Beach Carousel. We took a walk out on to the dock with the dogs. A startled Ripley jumped three feet in the air at an approaching ship’s horn blast, entertaining everyone on the dock. We shopped in the well equipped outdoor store Wanderlust Outfitters, and ate ice cream— much to Rocky’s delight. Kiwanis Park, a free dog park, was next. Rocky and Ripley enjoyed a few rounds of fetch (to work off his nibble of ice cream). North Pier Brewing Company was close by and dog friendly. We went over to enjoy a flight of craft beer.  The dogs relaxed in the shade again, except for the few moments when Ripley crawled into Nick’s lap.

Lake Michigan was beautiful. Dunewood Campground was nearly perfect. The surrounding ecosystems were diverse and interesting. If there wasn’t such a big world to explore, I would have already been back.

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