Miller Woods Beach
Gary, IN
Miller Woods Beach is the westernmost national park beach on Lake Michigan, a nearly hidden stretch of sand in Indiana Dunes National Park. You reach it either by walking west along the sand from Lake Street Beach or by hiking the Paul H. Douglas Trail through oak savanna and dune-and-swale habitat, about 3.5 miles round trip.
A wild, walk-in beach inside a national park, though it takes a hike to get there.
How we score beachesStart at the Paul H. Douglas Center for Environmental Education, which is free, and hike the trail to the beach.
Park at the Douglas Center or at Lake Street Beach and walk in.
Reached only on foot, by trail or along the beach.
Spring and fall are beautiful for the trail. The beach is quiet even in July.
More Great Lakes beaches
Sleeping Bear Dunes Beach
Empire, MI · Great Lakes
Freshwater Lake Michigan surf below towering sand dunes, some over 400 feet tall, with water clear enough to rival a coastline and a hike back up the dune to burn it off.
New Buffalo City Beach
New Buffalo, MI · Great Lakes
New Buffalo City Beach is the first real Lake Michigan beach you hit crossing from Indiana, a wide stretch of sand at the end of Whittaker Street beside the harbor and the Galien River channel. Chicago weekenders fill it in summer. The town's shops and restaurants are a five minute walk back up the street.
Warren Dunes State Park
Sawyer, MI · Great Lakes
Warren Dunes State Park in Sawyer has roughly three miles of Lake Michigan shoreline and some of the tallest dunes in southwest Michigan. Tower Hill rises about 260 feet above the lake, and climbing it and running back down is a rite of passage. On a hot July Saturday the beach feels like a small city.