Porter sits at the heart of Indiana Dunes National Park, and that's where almost all the action is. The beach and the dunes are the headline attractions, but the park's ecological diversity means there's more to explore than first meets the eye — bogs, oak savannas, wetlands, and the remnants of a working 19th-century farm all sit within a few miles of the lakeshore.
Indiana Dunes State Park, which sits inside the national park boundary, charges a separate entrance fee but rewards visitors with some of the best hiking in the region.