Parking
Use the East Trailhead lot at 540 North County Line Road in Gary. The separate entrance is just north of the main West Beach entrance; do not enter by the main beach road. The Grand Boulevard west end has no parking.
Overview
About Marquette Trail
Why go
- Nearly level rail grade makes a longer, easy walk.
- The corridor passes forest, wetland and rolling-dune habitat.
Heads up
- No drinking water or restrooms at either end; no parking at the west end.
- Park materials disagree about whether the trail is paved or gravel.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Indiana Dunes map
Full mapElevation601–613 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
4 active Indiana Dunes alerts
- 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
- ClosureBailly/Chellberg Trail stair sections closedPortions of the Bailly/Chellberg Trail with stairs are closed through October 30, 2026, to allow completion of a boardwalk replacement project. Check current park conditions before setting out.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Indiana Dunes Tour Guide
Your drive to Marquette Trail, 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 trailhead
Marquette Trail: Woods Along an Old Rail Line0:00 / 0:24
“You're coming up on Marquette Trail's east trailhead, with a separate entrance just north of the West Beach entrance.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Indiana Dunes Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- West Beach: Sand and Skyline
- Tolleston Dunes Overlook: A Short Wetland Stop
- Tolleston Dunes: An Old Shoreline
- Sand That Travels in Hops
- 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!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Marquette Trail
A flat rail-trail out-and-backMarquette is a nearly level 4.
Marquette is a nearly level 4.6-mile out-and-back from County Line Road west to Grand Boulevard and back, following a former Indiana Harbor Belt railbed. Allow about two hours on foot; the 30-minute figure in park materials is for riding. It suits a longer, easy walk. Pick another trail if you want a beach walk or a climb.
Through woods and wetlandsThe route follows a rail corridor through hardwood forest, wetlands and rolling dunes.
The route follows a rail corridor through hardwood forest, wetlands and rolling dunes. It is more of a steady nature walk than a sequence of big viewpoints, and no signature overlook is documented along this stretch.
Where to startUse the East Trailhead lot at 540 North County Line Road in Gary.
Use the East Trailhead lot at 540 North County Line Road in Gary. Its entrance is just north of the main West Beach entrance; do not take the main beach entrance road. The trail’s western end is at Grand Boulevard, with no parking there. Neither end has drinking water or restrooms.
Surface and dogsPark information disagrees about the surface: one current listing calls the bike route paved,…
Park information disagrees about the surface: one current listing calls the bike route paved, while another still describes gravel. Check current trail information if a fully paved route matters to you; the park does not list this trail as wheelchair accessible. Leashed dogs are allowed on a leash no longer than six feet.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Indiana Dunes
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.
