Picnic area · Indiana Dunes National Park
A first-come shelter beside a web of dune trails.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Indiana Dunes Tour Guide
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
Glenwood Dunes: Picnic and Trail Choices“Up ahead is Glenwood Dunes Picnic Area, where a covered shelter, tables and grills make a useful stop with your own lunch. Shelter space is first-come.”
Plays as you drive up to Glenwood Dunes Picnic Area in the Parkwolf Indiana Dunes Tour Guide.
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Guide
Glenwood Dunes Picnic Area is the covered picnic shelter and tables at the main Glenwood Dunes lot, where U.S. 20 meets Brummitt Road. It’s a practical lunch stop if you’re pairing a meal with time in the dunes. Shelter space is first-come, so keep the plan flexible.
This is one of the park’s designated picnic and grilling sites. Use the provided grill or an approved enclosed carry-in grill, and let charcoal cool before disposing of it safely. The paved lot accommodates cars and horse trailers.
The same lot serves a large set of connected dune trails, with 13 junctions and loop choices from under a mile to nearly 15 miles, plus extensions. Hiking, running, horseback riding and winter cross-country skiing are all part of the trail network. Take a map before leaving the lot; the junctions make it easy to wander onto a longer outing than planned.
Wildlife
85 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
48 sightingsSandhill CraneMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
113 sightingsWhite-tailed DeerMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
23 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
49 sightingsBeaverMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
13 sightingsBarred OwlMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Indiana Dunes. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateGlenwood Dunes Extension Trail5.7 mi · 3 hr · At the trailheadA flat, sandy extension with a longer walk from the main lot.
EasyCalumet Dunes Trail0.6 mi · 20 min · 1 mi awayA quick paved loop on Lake Michigan's old shoreline
EasyDunewood Trace Campground Trail4.4 mi · 2.5 hr · 1 mi awayAn easy, sandy out-and-back to Dunewood Campground.
ModerateDune Ridge Trail0.7 mi · 45 min · 2 mi awayA sandy 0.7-mile lollipop with a Great Marsh overlook.
EasyDunes Kankakee Trail3.6 mi · 1.8 hr · 2.2 mi awayA paved, accessible link between the Visitor Center and State Park.
EasyGreat Marsh Trail1.3 mi · 1 hr · 2.4 mi awayA flat marsh loop with an observation deck for birding.
EasyGreat Marsh Accessible Trail0.2 mi · 15 min · 2.5 mi awayA short paved route to the marsh's bird-viewing deck.
EasyHeron Rookery Trail3.3 mi · 1.8 hr · 3.6 mi awayBest in spring, when woodland flowers brighten the river trail.
Picnic area · 1.8 mi awayTremont Picnic AreaA shaded picnic break, not a beach or dune-view stop.
Visitor center · 1.9 mi awayIndiana Dunes State Park Nature CenterA small indoor stop for dunes exhibits and feeder birds.
Campground · 2.2 mi awayIndiana Dunes State Park Electric CampgroundStay under the trees, with a beach trail right from camp.
Campground · 2.2 mi awayNissaki Youth Tent AreaThree primitive group areas for youth tent camping.
Visitor center · 2.3 mi awayIndiana Dunes Visitor CenterStart here to sort out which beach, trail or park comes next.
Campground · 2.3 mi awayDunewood CampgroundA wooded base, with lake beaches a short drive away.
Beach · 2.4 mi awayKemil BeachA Lake Michigan beach with a Great Marsh hike from its lot.
Beach · 2.5 mi awayDunbar BeachA sandy Lake Michigan beach with an uphill walk back.Parkwolf’s Indiana Dunes ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
