Beach Party

Our friends Susie and Tony invited us to a party at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. Now, Gary Indiana is not the most wonderful (safe) destination in the Midwest, but the dunes are really nice. We started out the day with a nutritious breakfast at the Crispy Waffle in Romeoville. The prophetic writing on the wall was correct, it really is Wafflicious. Note -- do not look at the waffle chef mural too critically or you will realize there are many artistic problems with it. Then, off to Indiana. This was a brave journey for Jason and Kelly, since we have had nothing but bad luck in Indiana, every time we cross the border. But today was much improved.

We checked out the visitor center, where we scored another stamp in our National Parks Passport. Then we hit the state park for a hike on the dunes (hike #9). Note to selves -- next time bring bug spray. On the hike back we passed through some low-lying lands and were eaten alive by mosquitos. Kelly even got a bite on her palm. Yick. But the lake was beautiful. We saw butterflies and slid around in the sand.

Afterward, Susie had an ice cream craving and we all thought this was a fine idea, so we stopped in at DQ. Susie and Tony ordered the exact same items as us, which we didn't realize until they were delivered to our table. Maybe we are spending a little too much time together? ;) Then we had some time to kill before the party, so we went to Bass Pro Shop. This place is kind of like Disneyland for outdoors people, especially hunters and fishers. Jason got a new water bottle and Kelly a tarp to put out on her balcony for when she does stained glass, so that glass shards don't fall through the cracks and land on her downstairs neighbor's head.

Then it was off to the party, thrown by Susie's brother's friend. So Jason and I were pretty much crashers, though we met the host and he was very nice and welcoming. He had rented out the Gary Aquatorium, this historical concrete bath pavillion right on the Lake Michigan shore. We got there on the early side and scoped it all out. The place was built by one of the fathers of the prairie architecture movement, and it was a memorial to Chanute, one of the fathers of aviation. He had tested out his prototype wings on these very dunes, the same wings that were used by the Wright Brothers soon after on their first sucessful flight.

Three bands were lined up, all with friends or family of the host as members. The sun went down and the music cranked up. The party got lively. A kiddy pool was filled with ice and brewskies. The music was just about all covers, each band different. The last was the coolest. They had the most energy and they went for hours. They were called Liberty's Teeth. Susie and I got our boogie on. We especially liked this one guy, Tippy, that played the bagpipes for several songs. He was super friendly and joked around with everyone, and walked around in a bright red kilt. And, none of the band members felt particularly tied down to the stage area. They all wandered around and played and danced with people in the "audience". The party host wandered around with cans of bug spray and randomly sprayed the whole place down, keeping out the other uninvited guests. And we saw a very dramatic fight between two women that was a bit scary for a few moments, until one was dragged out kicking and yelling.

That night we slept on the beach, just outside of the Aquatorium. The party host had gotten permits from the city for people to do this. Jason and I sat out on the dark beach for a while, watching the moon reflected in the dark water, staring out into total pitch darkness. It was lovely falling asleep to the crashing waves, though a bit clammy. And we woke up to the sun baking our tent. And we got sand everywhere. Our conclusion -- camping on the beach is not as romantic as it sounds. But it's still fun.