*Special thanks to Indiana Dunes Tourism for sponsoring today’s post! As always, all opinions are my own*
As many of know, I’m heading to Disney World TOMORROW (woot, woot) but before I leave for Florida I had the urge to take one more Midwest mini vacation. One of the many reasons I love living in Chicago so much is the fact that there are so many exciting surrounding cities and places you can visit on a whim (like my impromptu trip to St. Louis last week!). Although the four hour drive to St. Louis a few days prior wasn’t too bad, I decided it was best to take a trip that was a little closer to the city this time. Since Indiana Dunes is only about a 55 minute drive from Chicago and I’ve been itching to hit the beach, I knew it would be the perfect location for an impromptu getaway. 
Talk about taking the scenic route! The drive through Indiana Dunes State Park was so amazing. Gosh, mother nature is just so gorgeous. Indiana Dunes is an unspoiled place full of natural beauty; the perfect destination to get outside and make the most of the lingering warmth before chilly weather sets in. I’ve recently started getting into hiking and jogging and just being more of an outdoorsy person. My goal is to go camping sometime soon (lucky for me there are plenty of camping grounds throughout the the Indiana Dunes!). 
There’s just so any fun things to do at Indiana Dunes. Outdoor activities include birding, bicycling, kayaking, hiking, fishing, paddling, running, the Beyond the Beach Discovery Trail and the 3 Dune Challenge! I LOVE that pets are welcome on the trails at Indiana Dunes (I’ll definitely have to bring Loki during my next trip to Indiana Dunes, he LOVES at good hike!).
As you can clearly see, Loki definitely loves the great outdoors. In fact, I have Loki to thank for my newfound love of all things outdoorsy.
It started to rain a little bit while I was hiking along a few of the trails but I stumbled upon the most adorable little flower so I didn’t mind to much. That’s one of the things I love about trails/nature walks, you never knew what exciting discoveries you might find.
Of course I couldn’t leave Indiana Dunes without a trip to the beach! I’m a HUGE beach lover (I swear I was a mermaid in a past life!). There’s just something about beaches that relax me. Obviously I love to swim but there’s so many other fun things to do at the beach. I love to curl up with a good book as I listen to the waves hit the sand. Just look at that view! What I’d give to be that bird flying high above Lake Michigan and Indiana Dunes. Although I’m super EXCITED for my trip to Disney tomorrow, I’m so glad I got to have a relaxing day at the Indiana Dunes before I left. Because there’s no better way to prepare for a lengthy vacation than having a mini pre-vacation vacation. See you soon Indiana Dunes!