Hobart Prairie Grove Trail (West)
in Indiana · centroid 30 mi from Chicago
Hobart Prairie Grove Trails Hobart Prairie Grove consists of forested ravines and a portion of scenic Lake George, which is part of the Deep River. The Hobart Woodland trail offers views of forest ravines and has an overlook of Lake George. The Oak Savannah rail trail runs through the Hobart Prairie Grove and is a great place for biking, pushing a stroller or just hiking to relax and improve your health.
The Hobart Prairie Grove preserves several habitats including wetlands, prairie remnants, white oak flatlands, and a rare bur oak savanna. At about 300 acres in size, it contains 343 native plants and an abundance of wildlife. This area is also noteworthy because of a unique soil that is made up of at least 70 percent silt and clay with the smaller portions of sand.
This type of soil is one of the reasons for the outstanding diversity of life here at Hobart Prairie Grove. This very special place was added to the National Park System as part of a 1992 expansion of Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore (renamed the Indiana Dunes National Park in 2019). The Indiana Dunes National Park owns two miles of the almost nine mile Oak Savannah trail that extends from Hobart to the east and Griffith to the west.
- States
- Indiana
- Trail type
- National Park trail
- Centroid nearest city
- Chicago, IL · 30 mi · ~50 min drive
- Centroid coords
- 41.5241°, -87.3072°
About Indiana Dunes National Park
This trail is inside Indiana Dunes National Park, a national park managed by the U.S. National Park Service. Conditions, road status, trail closures, and reservation requirements are published on the park's NPS page — check it before driving in, especially in winter or during major weather events.
Entrance fee: $20 per vehicle (verify current rate on the park page). An America the Beautiful annual pass ($80) covers entrance to all NPS units.
Official NPS trail page: https://www.nps.gov/places/hobart-prairie-grove-trail-main-west.htm
Park homepage: https://www.nps.gov/indu/index.htm
Plan your hike
Maps + permits: long-distance trails like this often require permits for through-hiking, backcountry camping, or specific sections (especially in National Parks). Check with the maintaining organisation listed above and the relevant land manager before booking travel.
Water + supplies: water sources vary seasonally on most U.S. trails. Carry a filter and consult current trail-condition reports — through-hiker journals (PCT-L, AT Reddit, etc.) and the maintaining organisation publish regular updates.
When to go: hiking seasons vary widely with elevation, latitude, and snowpack. Through-hikers traditionally start the AT in March-April (Springer northbound) and the PCT in late April (Campo northbound). High-elevation western trails (CDT, JMT, Wonderland) generally aren't passable until July.
If you've hiked Hobart Prairie Grove Trail (West) and have current notes (water sources, trail closures, permit changes), tell us at /contact — we update pages as we learn.
Stay nearby
Other trails within 50 miles
Hobart Prairie Grove Trail (East)
2 miles from this trail's centroid
Paul H. Douglas Trail through Miller Woods
6 miles from this trail's centroid
DLT h - N. Lake to Midwest Rd
8 miles from this trail's centroid
DLT j - Midwest to Howe
11 miles from this trail's centroid
Cowles Bog Trail (South)
14 miles from this trail's centroid
Cowles Bog Trail (North)
14 miles from this trail's centroid
Sources
Trail data on this page is compiled from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), the maintaining organisation's public-facing materials, and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA where excerpts are quoted). Distance, terminus, and descriptive text for nationally-designated trails are hand-curated from federal land-manager websites and trail-association sources. We do not modify the underlying data; this page presents what is already publicly recorded. To suggest corrections, see our methodology page.