I was able to get away for a hike today to a new park, Tippecanoe State Park in Northwest Indiana. For this trip, I chose to hike trails 3, 4, 5, and 8.
I started out that the Nature Center, which has a trailhead to Trail 4. This winds through woodlands with the first point of interest being a lagoon left over from a change in the rivers course many hundreds of years ago. This time of year, plant life was teaming in the lagoon, and the entire surface is covered such that you can't see into the water.
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| Trails were wide and flat, making for an easy hike. |
After winding through the Tippecanoe Nature Preserve for a while, I picked up Trail 5. This continues north bumping up against the river, and two campgrounds. There is a short stretch where we hike on the road (maybe 100-150 feet or so), then it's back into the woodland.
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| The river was slow and winding through the park. |
At the north end of the park, we come to some events structures, restrooms, and such. With a quick cross of the road we're on to Trail 8 in the Sand Hill Nature Preserve. This is a quick loop, then it's back south on Trail 5.
At the point where I originally picked up Trail 5, I turned right, heading south then west over to Trail 2, a shared hiking and horseback riding trail. This was another out and back loop. I returned back to Trail 5, then picked up Trail for again for the return.
It's not the worst hike I've had, but there was much left to be desired.
Pros:
- The woodland areas were beautiful. Much of the trails were through pine forests, and the needles helped keep the trail flat and clean of brush.
- When it was quiet, it was very quiet.
- There are plenty of trails to hike, and they are generally well marked.
Cons:
- There was a constant source of human noise, mostly from campers getting rowdy and fishermen yelling and laughing at each other, all the while in the same boat.
- Spiderwebs filled the trail. I ended up picking up a thin stick and swaying it in front of me to collect the webs.
- The bugs were horribly distracting, constantly flying around my face and ears.
- Some of the trails are nothing more than service roads. If you see a trail that looks like a straight line, it's probably a service road.
- The trails were entirely too close to campgrounds. This distracted from the nature viewing, and again, takes the hiker through stretches with a lot of music and yelling.
I have no regrets for making the trip, as it was only 45 minutes from home, but I don't expect I would return to this one. If you're looking for a place to camp around lots of other people, and do some kayaking or canoeing, this is a good park. If you like quiet hikes that immerse you in nature, this is not the place.
DETAILS
Time: 5 hours 40 min.
Distance: 23.5 km
Min Elevation 189 m
Max Elevation: 264 m
Temp: 90 deg. F
