ParkwolfGet the app
Central Avenue Walk-in Campground in Indiana Dunes National Park

Campground · Indiana Dunes National Park

Central Avenue Walk-in Campground

Five quiet sites near Lake Michigan, reached by a steep gear carry.

Photo: National Park Service
Type
Campground
Nearest trail
1 mi
Audio stories
7 nearby
  • Parking
  • Picnic tables
  • Restrooms
DirectionsMap

Hear the audio tour

Central Avenue Beach and Bank Swallows

Overview

About Central Avenue Walk-in Campground

Why stop

  • Separated sites close to the Lake Michigan shore

Heads up

  • All gear goes uphill over uneven ground

Map

Where it is

Loading the Indiana Dunes map
Full map
CampgroundCentral Avenue Walk-in Campground41.70172, -86.94822
Keep this map with you offline in the Parkwolf app

Plan your stop

Before you go

4 active Indiana Dunes alerts

  • CautionLake Michigan water-safety alert after recent stormsMentions Lake Michigan, referenced in this guideDo not enter Lake Michigan after heavy rainfall or recent storms because E. coli levels are likely to rise above safe swimming standards.Official details
  • ClosureTrail closures and flooding-related access limitsSeveral Indiana Dunes trails are closed or partially inaccessible because of tree damage, riverbank collapse, flooding, and Marquette Greenway construction; stay out of closed sections and use…Official details
See all 4 alerts
A park ranger sits on a dash-mounted phone, talking, as Parkwolf’s Tour Guide plays “Army Cutworm Moths: A Grizzly Bear Buffet” on Grand Loop Road below Dunraven Pass in Yellowstone
Parkwolf Tour GuideThe highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.

Indiana Dunes Tour Guide

Your drive to Central Avenue Walk-in Campground, narrated.

Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Indiana Dunes National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.

Recorded for this place

Central Avenue Beach and Bank Swallows
0:00 / 0:30
“Central Avenue Beach is coming up, with the water about an eighth of a mile from parking. In spring and summer, watch for bank swallows flying to and from burrows in the dune face.”

Plays as you drive up to Central Avenue Walk-in Campground in the Parkwolf Indiana Dunes Tour Guide.

More stories near here in the app

  • Water Beneath the Dunes
  • An Acorn for Later
  • Mount Baldy: A Moving Dune
  • When the Lake Sloshes
  • 51 audio storiesacross Indiana Dunes’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
  • Wildlife heatmapsfor Bald Eagle, Sandhill Crane, White-tailed Deer, and 13 more
  • Works offlinemaps, 34 trails, 30 places, and audio download before you lose signal
  • CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
★★★★★
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
JMJamesApp Store review
Download Parkwolf on the App StoreGet Parkwolf on Google Play

4.7 from 8,600+ ratings

Guide

More about Central Avenue Walk-in Campground

A tiny walk-in campgroundThis is a primitive, tent-only campground of five reservable sites east of the Central Avenue…

This is a primitive, tent-only campground of five reservable sites east of the Central Avenue Beach parking lot. It suits campers who want Lake Michigan close and are happy to carry their gear up a large hill over uneven ground. Vehicles stay at the lot; there is no drive-up access to the sites.

Pack for a walk-in stayEach site has a picnic table, but there is no drinking water at camp, so bring what you need.

Each site has a picnic table, but there is no drinking water at camp, so bring what you need. A portable toilet is at the parking lot. Flush restrooms and water by the beach are seasonal, so do not count on them for your campsite supply. The approach is not wheelchair accessible, and RVs and trailers do not fit in the lot. Pack out your trash.

The quiet comes with a tradeoffThe sites are spread out above Central Beach, with the Lake Michigan shore downhill.

The sites are spread out above Central Beach, with the Lake Michigan shore downhill. Their quieter, more separated feel is the draw; hauling a full camping load up the slope is the cost. Keep food sealed in your vehicle because raccoons have repeatedly approached campsites, and plan for mosquitoes in warm weather.

campingbeachlaketentprimitive

Wildlife

Wildlife in Indiana Dunes

All Indiana Dunes wildlife maps
Bald Eagle85 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 8 AMSighting mapSandhill Crane48 sightingsSandhill CraneMost seen around 6 PMSighting mapWhite-tailed Deer113 sightingsWhite-tailed DeerMost seen around 6 PMSighting mapCoyote23 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 8 PMSighting mapBeaver49 sightingsBeaverMost seen around 8 PMSighting mapBarred Owl13 sightingsBarred OwlMost seen around 6 AMSighting map

Sighting maps show where each species has been reported across Indiana Dunes. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.

Keep exploring

Near Central Avenue Walk-in Campground

See it all on the map

Trails nearby

ModerateMount Baldy Beach Trail0.8 mi · 1 hr · 1 mi awayA short walk ends in a steep scramble down to Lake Michigan.EasyGreat Marsh Accessible Trail0.2 mi · 15 min · 2.7 mi awayA short paved route to the marsh's bird-viewing deck.EasyGreat Marsh Trail1.3 mi · 1 hr · 2.7 mi awayA flat marsh loop with an observation deck for birding.ModerateDune Ridge Trail0.7 mi · 45 min · 3.6 mi awayA sandy 0.7-mile lollipop with a Great Marsh overlook.EasyCalumet Dunes Trail0.6 mi · 20 min · 4.2 mi awayA quick paved loop on Lake Michigan's old shorelineEasyDunewood Trace Campground Trail4.4 mi · 2.5 hr · 4.2 mi awayAn easy, sandy out-and-back to Dunewood Campground.

More stops nearby

Beach · At the trailheadCentral Avenue BeachSummer bank swallows shuttle over this sandy Lake Michigan beach.Beach · 1 mi awayMount Baldy BeachDune views from the lot; a sandy walk to the lake.Sight · 2.6 mi awayGreat Marsh Observation DeckA short accessible walk to the Great MarshBeach · 2.7 mi awayLake View BeachPicnic above the lake, with stairs down to the sand.Historic marker · 2.8 mi awayStephen Mather Memorial PlaqueA quick stop for the dunes' conservation story.Campground · 2.8 mi awayDunewood CampgroundA wooded base, with lake beaches a short drive away.Sight · 3 mi awayCentury of Progress HomesFive 1933 fair homes show five different ideas of modern living.Beach · 3.1 mi awayDunbar BeachA sandy Lake Michigan beach with an uphill walk back.

Parkwolf’s Indiana Dunes ranking

Top sights in Indiana Dunes

All 30 places
  1. 1West BeachBeach
  2. 2Mount Baldy BeachBeach
  3. 3Portage Lakefront and RiverwalkBeach
  4. 4Century of Progress HomesSight
  5. 5Chellberg FarmSight
  6. 6Bailly HomesteadSight

Take Parkwolf to Indiana Dunes.

The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.

4.7 from 8,600+ ratings

Download Parkwolf on the App StoreGet Parkwolf on Google Play