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Also visit:

Bellaboo's Play and Discovery Center

Deep River Waterpark

Conway Observatory and CAS web link

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Trails

Where can you go take a hike or just enjoy a quiet stroll?
There are twelve parks in the Lake County Parks and Recreation Department and two hike/bike trails scattered from Lake Michigan to the Kankakee River . All totaled, there are more than 100 miles of trails in the County Parks system. We invite you to go to a park near you and step toward better health. The following is a description of the trails located at each of our parks. GATE FEES APPLY WHEN GATEKEEPER IS ON DUTY.

LOOKING FOR HIKE/BIKE TRAIL MAPS?

Check the web at http://www.nirpc.org and click on link for transportation at the top, then on the non motorized link for hike/bike maps of the region.

Trails within the Lake County Parks are listed here.

  • Buckley Homestead: There are 2.2 miles of trails in total at Buckley Homestead. A ¾ mile loop, bark chip trail, connects the visitor center, schoolhouse, and barn, with slight terrain, some hills and woods. There is an additional 1.4 mile trail around the perimeter of the back 80 acres, hilly, with some woods.

  • Cedar Creek Golf Course: Cedar Creek features an executive 9 hole course with approximately 1 mile of cart trails. Pull a cart for enjoyable exercise.

  • Deep River: Deep River has a majority of the county park system's wooded trails. Around Woods' Historic Mill there is a scenic brick paved path to the gazebo and out to Grinder Field. North, beyond the Old Lincoln Hwy. parking area, you will find the green trailhead and a .4 mile loop. It's .2 miles to the fork. From the fork to the County Line Road trailhead is 1 mile. From the fork to the yellow trail detour is .1 miles. The yellow trail detour is .2 miles. From the fork to the Sulky track trailhead is 1.5 miles. In total there is 2.3 miles of wooded, hilly trails along the river north of Wood's Historic Grist Mill to the old sulky track. Big Maple Lake area has 2.6 miles of mixed use horse/pedestrian trails.

  • Erie Lackawanna Trail: About 1.6 miles of the 12 mile asphalt trail are maintained by the Lake County Parks.

  • Gibson Woods: About 2.8 miles of wooded trail, flat terrain along the dune and swale topography of the nature preserve. Due to state dedication as a nature preserve, dogs or bicycles are not allowed.

  • Grand Kankakee Marsh: 29 miles of flat trails on levees that dissect and connect the Grand Kankakee Marsh. Woods, river and wetland abound in this birding haven.

  • Lake Etta: About 1 mile of wooded and waterfront trails, flat terrain.

  • Lemon Lake: One mile paved trail around lake and woods - some hills. More than 5 miles of primitive trails in hilly wooded terrain.

  • Oak Ridge Prairie: About 5 miles of trails in flat terrain through woods and prairie.

  • Oak Savannah Trail: 8 miles of wooded asphalt trail from Griffith to Porter County.

  • Stoney Run: About 8 miles of trails, flat and hilly, mostly wooded terrain.

  • Three Rivers: A 1 & 1/4 mile asphalt trail follows the lake edge with flat terrain. The east side of the trail is wooded.

  • Turkey Creek Golf Course: Golf with a pull cart and walk the course (during off peak times)

  • Whihala Beach: Whihala has a paved beach front trail which follows Lake Michigan along the length of the park approximately 2/3 of a mile.

The Oak Savannah Trail (OST) currently encompasses 8.25 miles from Oak Ridge Prairie County Park to the Prairie Duneland Trail at the Lake/Porter County Line Road in Portage with a break in Hobart. Trail users will be able to access the western segment of the trail from the trail head near the parking lot at Oak Ridge Prairie. This segment runs 6.25 miles to Wisconsin Street in Hobart. The eastern segment, following the Hobart break, may be accessed from a gravel parking lot at the northeast corner of Cleveland Street and State Road 51 in Hobart. This segment is 1.25 miles in length and will take users from the Cleveland/51 intersection to the Prairie Duneland Trail.

Citizens should exercise extreme caution as they use the OST because several at-grade road crossing's have to be taken into consideration. Main, Chase, Harrison, Madison, Delaware, Georgia, Liverpool, and Union Streets all have moderate to heavy vehicular traffic that affects the OST.

Trail users will enjoy the OST as it takes them on a journey through savannahs, remnant prairies, wetlands, lakes, parks, and residential neighborhoods.

The Lake County Parks and the City of Hobart are working together to close the gap between Wisconsin Street in Hobart and the Cleveland/51 intersection in the next few years. Any questions regarding this gap should be directed to the Hobart Parks Department.

For reservations and more information about the Lake County Parks Call 219-769-PARK
Mon-Fri 8:30am to 4:30pm Central Time (Chicago Time)

Lake County Parks and Recreation Department Corporate Office
8411 East Lincoln Highway, Crown Point, Indiana 46307
Just west of Deep River WaterparK 4.5 miles east of I-65 on Route 30

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