Indiana Dunes State
Park is open and ready for visitors, despite some confusion caused by the
closure of nearby Mt. Baldy at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore.
Just to set the
record straight: Mt. Baldy is a federally owned property managed by the
National Park Service (NPS) and its parking lot, trail, and beach have all
been closed to vehicular and pedestrian traffic while NPS continues to
investigate holes and depressions which have been found on top of the dune.
Last summer, a
6-year-old Illinois boy fell into one of the holes and narrowly escaped
death.
Indiana Dunes State
Park (IDSP), on the other hand, is managed by the Indiana Department of
Natural Resources, is located some 10 miles west of Mt. Baldy, and covers
almost 2,200 acres along the Lake Michigan shoreline.
“The campground,
beach and scheduled interpretive activities at Indiana Dunes State Park are
unaffected by the Mount Baldy closure,” IDSP Property Manager Brandt
Baughman said. “Although there has not been any indication of similar
occurrences at Indiana Dunes State Park, the park labor crew and lifeguard
staff will conduct daily monitoring of the beach to provide for visitor
safety.”
Although Mt. Baldy
is off limits, the remaining 15,000 acres of the Dunes National Lakeshore is
open to visitors.