Ladders, Bridges, and Ravines: Turkey Run and Shades State Parks

I cannot even begin to describe how much I loved these hikes. Right here in Indiana, which you think of as flat and corn fields as far as the eye can see, you've got these two gems. 

We hiked an absurd amount, and I can't believe the kids and Hank held up for it. It's an hour drive from our house, so we geared up, and hit Turkey Run first. 

We started with trails 6, 7, and 11 as a warm-up hike. The kids were super excited when they realized we would be hiking through a ravine and a mostly dried up creek, jumping back and forth over the water. They also very much enjoyed the stairs and the little lookout spot. 

We then combined trails 1, 3, 5, and 10 to create a very wobbly loop around--and we even split up at some points because...

Ladders! Yes! We had to climb ladders! I! Love! This! Hike! What's not to love? Hiking through ravines, along creeks, through creeks, up ladders, past waterfalls, over a freaking suspension bridge... It was The Best. 

Alas, Hank could not hike up a ladder, so we took turns finding an alternate route with Hank, while the other person climbed with the kids. 

After that, which was a solid 5 miles at that point, we headed out to go home except WHOOPS maybe not, we decided to really quick go over to Shades State Park, which is only 15 minutes from Turkey Run. Because we are bananas, we then went on ANOTHER hike of trails 1 and 4, adding on 2 miles. 

JD passed out in the car on the ride back, and I am pretty sure EJ did too. Hank had only been with us for a week at that point, but he seemed thrilled with the entire thing.

Honestly, some of my favorite hiking. It was just wonderful. It was very easy to choose your own adventure--you could keep it easy, or you could make a really hard hike out of it. It's pretty critical here to have good hiking boots or shoes, because you're often doing some light rock scrambling, and the rocks can be slick. I saw more than one person wearing flip flops with blood running down their leg from a fall. 

Some of this was on the edge of JD's abilities--not because he couldn't do it, because he's a climber and loves danger, but because I needed him to listen and do as I said, when I said it. That's a harder skill for him, and he has not yet learned to assess the best path to take, so there were points where I needed to be behind him for safety (the ladders) but I knew when we got up the ladders, it was slick and he needed to choose carefully where to step. Luckily, EJ is quite excellent at finding the best path to take, so she went ahead and assessed things for us while we brought up the rear. 

Anyway, the kids loved it and were already asking to go back.

Lawrence Creek Trail - Fort Harrison State Park

We did one of our (the adults) favorite trails in Fort Harrison--Lawrence Creek. It's a mixed use trail, for hikers and mountain bikers. Part of why it's such a great trail is because of the mountain bikers--all the obstacles they set or leave for them also make great things for the kids to do too. Rocks, downed trees turned into wide balance beams or jumps, log mountains, curves, and more--it's a fun one to do. 

Here's Lawrence Creek Trail on All Trails. 

It's 4.5 miles, but we tacked on just a bit more to make it an even 5 miles. This was the longest single trail hike the kids have been on, so I was thrilled with their accomplishment. We've stacked hikes before--3 miles with 4 miles, etc.--but that usually involves a sitdown break and change of scenery. This was just, get on the trial and go, don't stop style, and they aced it. 

5 miles of hiking = 1 tired puppy. Hank did great on this hike, though he's got some leash learning to do. 

Indiana Dunes State and National Parks Picture Post

Our trip to Indiana Dunes was both delightful and frustrating--we were foiled by the weather, but we can't wait to go back.

It rained and sleeted the entire time we were there. It was always meant to be just a short trip--there in the early afternoon, hike, stay the night, get up and hike again, then head home. We saw the bad weather forecast, but at that point, we were stuck with the dates we had picked, and decided to just go and have as much fun as we could. 

We did indeed have fun--but it was wet, cold fun, and shorter than we would have liked. We heavily leaned on the visitors center, which was excellent. The informational videos were wonderful, the kids were engaged, and the ranger was just delighted that we were full of questions. 

We did short burst hikes around the dunes in both parks before we got totally soaked and frozen (this was back in March!) and had to call it. 

Fort Harrison State Park

Indiana is our home base, and we consider Fort Harrison State Park--or as everyone around here calls it, Fort Ben--our home park.

Why To Go

It's just dang pretty, and its right there, in Indianapolis. There's creeks, and some decent hills (for central Indiana, that is). There's great spots to rest and picnic. There's trails for road biking, and trails for mountain biking. There's golf, too, and the old Garrison is now a restaurant with delicious food, with an Inn nearby. There's sledding in winter, and fishing and canoeing in summer (with permits). There's horseback riding, and there's history--so much history to this park. 

It used to be part of an army post--the former Citizen's Military Training Camp has been preserved around the park office in what used to be known as Camp Glenn. There are the park offices and even a Museum of 20th Century Warfare, which has exhibits about the soldiers that served at Fort Harrison. There are often reenactments and other history related events.

Favorite Trails

I could try to pick my favorite trails, but I can't. I won't. I shan't. You can't make me, I love them all. It's very common to people to have their leashed dogs on the trail, kids are a common trail sighting, and you get casual hikers to brisk and intense hikers to trail runners. Some of the trials are mixed use, meaning, they are also used for mountain bikers. Personally, when I am hiking with kids, I prefer to have the mountain bikers coming at me head on--I can see them in advance, with time to pull the kids off the trail. The mountain bikers have almost exclusively been fantastic and polite, but hey, they are on a bike, balancing, and we are on our own two feet, so I like to move for them rather than make them work for it. Team work makes the dream work.

Schoen Creek--This was the trail that had me falling in love with Fort Ben. It's up, it's down, there are tight turns, a steep drop off, it winds back and forth. Along the way, you'll pass over bits of frames of old buildings--remnants of the military fort, or get glimpses of Lawton Loop, where the officers lived, and are now private houses. 

Lawrence Creek--This trail is longer, and one that JK and I typically do together, without the kids, though we do parts of the trails with the kids. They can certainly handle the distance, it's more that we just like saving this one for just us. It has one of my favorite section of the entire park, where the trail narrows and is cut into the side of the hill but wraps back in on itself. I often let JK and kids, if they are with us, get far ahead, just so I can be amused by the view. So close, but so far. 

Camp Creek and Fall Creek--although these are/can be two separate trails, we often do them together and combine them in new and different ways. These are the two trails we prefer to have the kids on, because there are no bikers--it's a hiking only trail. This is a trail where, at the beginning, you often see people finding little sandy beach spots and floating along in the creek. It's honestly delightful to see families come camp out for the day, floating, picnicking, and having fun. This trail will take you along the creek, through trees, through tall grasses, up stairs, over gravel and sometimes  quick pavement crossing, down hills, and more. It can be kind of a choose your adventure hike, because you can cut it very short and exit on to the paved path back to the parking lot at several spots, or you can keep tacking on the dirt miles. 

There are some paved paths and a shorter Tree Line Trail, but they are more of a walk (though a delightful one) than a hike.

Favorite Spots to Be

Millennium Grove Picnic Area is such a great spot. There are places and spots to pull off and park your car and when the grasses are tall, you are isolated from each other. Schoen Creek Trail runs all around the area, so you could pick it up and hike a bit, or you can just hang. 

The top of the big sledding hill is another major favorite. It's a nice view from a high point, and I love sitting up there in summer and fall and just enjoying the sun and breeze. This hill is where I do my "training" when I know I am going to hike bigger hills/mountains--I run up the hill and walk down, over and over. 

Other Things to Do

There are stables, so you can sign yourself up for a nice horseback ride. Our daughter did it when she was five, and it was easy enough and fun. In the winter, it's a popular place for sledding--that big hill is a great ride. There's a golf course that's part of the park, so if golfing is your jam, it's a beautiful course. I see many families in the summer load up a cooler and  go find a spot along the creeks, park themselves there, and wade in, floating along the creek. 

Last, but certainly not least, is the history. In Fort Ben is the museum of 20th Century Warfare. they have reenactments, displays, special exhibits, and special guest series.

Eats and Sleeps

Nearby, you have deliciousness. Porter Books and Brews is a delightful coffee shop with some baked goods. Cafe Audrey is delicious, as is Chef Suzanne's little drive up hut. There's some chains--Panera, Culver's--but I generally prefer the local places I mentioned. The Garrison is a more old-fashioned eating place, but they do a great brunch on weekends. 

The Fort Harrison Inn is fantastic. I've stayed there, despite being close to my house and it is just neat.