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Print Friendly MapThe Little Calumet River Levee Trail zig-zags east-west between Gary and Munster in Lake County, bringing residents to the river and its wetlands, and offering ample opportunities for birding and wildlife watching. The trail is paved and nicely maintained, suitable for walking, jogging, biking and other non-motorized uses.
The trail exists in two sections, with a 0.6 mile gap in between. The east segment begins near Indiana University Northwest campus and heads west through Lake Etta County Park and the riverside wetlands in Griffith, up to the railroad tracks. The west segment picks up a half-mile later, on Cline Avenue and continues through the wetlands, Homestead Park to the17-mile Erie Lackawanna Trail, with which it shares right-of-way for about a mile and a half, past the Wicker Park golf course and across the river. The Erie Lackwanna Trail then pivots north, while the Little Calumet River Trail continues west through Riverside Park before ending at the Monon Trail.
The Little Calumet River Trail is an off-street trail with very short on-street connections in parts. There are also street crossings along the route, and caution should be taken at these points.
East Segment
West Segment
Parking options from east to west include:
A copy of the trail map can be found at the links on the right-side of this page, or you can pick up a hard copy at the Indiana Welcome Center at Hammond.
in decent shape and quite scenic with many animals sighted (deer, coyote, turtles).
the highland rookery on the trail just west of cline avenue is worth viewing for migrating birds and waterfowl (egrets, herons).
connection with monon trail (west of calumet avenue) is under repair now.
I recently walked this trail, and I loved every moment of it. The scenery is great and I have seen people fishing, taking pictures, and talking as they walk.¿¿
I have to say this route is actually interesting. Bridges are kinda neat. With extensive civil repairs over years to the Little Calumet River you can see a lot of wildlife here. I enjoyed seeing deer, various geese, duck, coyotes, Blue Herons, and fish. From starting in Munster the trail is really an accessory to Erie Lackawanna Trail. It goes thru Munster, South Hammond and ends in Highland at Indiana 912. No bridge to cross. It does not easily cross to Griffith. I have seen some segments of it in Gary, along I94. I’m not sure why they say it ends in Gary. Maybe it will one day? This is an interesting stretch because it crosses the river with some nice bridges and it can lead you to Erie Lackawanna at least a few points.
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