No oceans lap the Midwest shore, and the palm trees here are potted. But don’t think the Midwest doesn’t have beaches. Whether it’s a shoreline along the Great Lakes or a manmade lake, most Midwesterners are within a few hours’ drive of a beach.
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In Title: Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore has a number of great beaches along Lake Michigan. National Park Service photo
Above: A sand sculpture at one of the four beaches at Carlyle Lake. The Tourism Bureau of Southwestern Illinois photo |
Illinois oases
Imagine browsing in some of the most elegant shops in the country along the Magnificent Mile and minutes later taking a dip in one of the Great Lakes. Imagine throngs of sunbathers soaking up the rays with a breathtaking skyline silhouetted behind them. This is Chicago’s Oak Street Beach, a favorite sunbather’s attraction for more than 100 years.
The beach, at the north end of Lake Shore Drive, is a stone’s throw from the city’s upscale Gold Coast neighborhood and across the street from the legendary Drake Hotel. In summer, the beach is an oasis where visitors find respite from the heat on the sandy shores of
Lake Michigan.
Swimming is allowed here only from Memorial Day to Labor Day when lifeguards are present, but visitors can stroll the beach and take in the fabulous views anytime. It’s a great place for people watching or a stop on the city’s walk/bike route along the lake.
What is a beach without a restaurant? Here it’s the Oak Street Bistro, open only during swimming season. Who cares if the palms are potted? You’re sipping libations from the restaurant’s bar and gazing at the waves lapping at the shore. For more information, call (312) 742-7529.
In southern Illinois, four beaches beckon vacationers to Carlyle Lake, the state’s largest manmade lake. The 26,000-acre lake was formed 40 years ago by damming the Kaskaskia River. Between campgrounds operated by the Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) and Eldon Hazlet State Park nearby, visitors have access to “a little over 700 campsites on the lake,” said ranger Stacie Selle.
At Dam West Beach, the largest at the lake and most popular, visitors can bring their own volleyballs for use with the net set up on the beach. Other beaches are Keyesport, Coles Creek and McNair, the smallest and least crowded. All of the beaches except Keyesport have changing facilities, Selle said.
“Carlyle Lake is known as a sailing lake because of being wide open but we also have these four beaches,” she said.
Just 50 minutes from downtown St. Louis, Carlyle Lake has always drawn scores of visitors from the Metro East area. With record high gas prices squeezing vacation dollars, Selle expects Carlyle will be even more popular with vacationers seeking a beach escape closer to home this year. Call (618) 594-5253.
Head for Dune Country in Indiana
Located 50 miles southeast of Chicago, Indiana’s dune country has some of the best beaches in the Midwest. Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore offers seven beaches along the southern edge of Lake Michigan. Indiana Dunes State Park, within the national lakeshore, also has a beach.
“Because the national lakeshore is not one contiguous park, our beaches are split up with separate parking areas for each,” said Bruce Rowe of the national lakeshore.
West Beach is the largest and the only one with a user fee. On the eastern end is Mount Baldy beach with the largest (126 feet high) moving dune at the lakeshore. However, Rowe noted that the longtime hike to the top of the dune and then down to the beach has been replaced with a route through the woods to stave off erosion.
On some lucky days when the weather is right, visitors to lakeshore beaches are rewarded with spectacular views of the Chicago skyline. Although the skyline may be seen from any of the beaches, visitors to West Beach are more likely to see Chicago because it is closer to the city, Rowe said.
“There are days when you can see Chicago virtually sticking out of the water sharp and clear and there are other days when you can barely see it and some when you can’t see it at all,” he said.
For more information on the national lakeshore, call (219) 926-7561. For visitor information, call the Porter County Convention, Recreation and Visitor Commission toll free at (800) 283-8687.
In southern Indiana, 8,800-acre Patoka Lake near Wickliffe offers a great beach for a refreshing dip on a hot summer day. The lake is a Corps of Engineers project with the beach and nearby campground under the state Department of Natural Resources.
Added attractions are a year-round astronomy program at the beach and kite-flying, interpreter/naturalist Maria Abel-Crecelius said.
“There’s a great updraft from this large lake,” she explained.
Although there is a beach house open during the summer season, there are no lifeguards. For additional information, call (812) 685-2464.
Making waves in Missouri
With more than 1,150 miles of shoreline, the Lake of the Ozarks in central Missouri offers visitors plenty of access to swimming, boating, fishing and a range of other water sports. The 54,000-acre lake was created in 1931 with the completion of the Bagnell Dam, and it has been attracting vacationers ever since.
The area is home to Missouri’s largest state park, Lake of the Ozarks State Park, which has 85 miles of shoreline, boat launching areas and two public beaches: Grand Glaize Beach on U. S. Highway 54 in Osage Beach and Public Beach Number 1 on Missouri Route 134. For details, call (573) 348-2694.
At Stockton State Park near Dadeville, visitors will find another beach for a refreshing swim.
“Stockton Lake is known for its steady breezes so there’s sailboating that’s very popular there,” Sue Holst, spokeswoman for Missouri State Parks, said. The beach at the park is on an inlet somewhat removed from other lake activities, she added.
The lake is near Stockton north of Branson off state Route 215 south. For more details, call (417) 276-4259. Portions of the park were temporarily closed this spring because of flooding. Call ahead before visiting.
A prairie beach in Kansas
A beach in Kansas, the prairie state?
“We’re not talking like a beach in Hawaii, but we’ve got a beach,” Rick Martin, park manager for Kanopolis State Park, Kansas’ first state park, said. Kanopolis is 40 miles southwest of Salina.
The surface temperature of the water at the lake, which was formed by the Kanopolis Reservoir, is often in the 70s, Martin said.
“At times it’s almost too much,” he said. “When we get into the 100-degree days, to me it’s sort of like bath water but it still cools people down.”
Kathie Sutin is a contributor from St. Louis, Mo.
