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| Cowles Bog Tail in spring. NPS photo. |
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| Cowles Bog Trail map. NPS illustration. |
The 2.85-miles round trip hike is a segment of two stacked loops created by the Cowles Bog and the Greenbelt trails. This segment consists of a stem trail and the entire first loop; this keeps the walk focused on Cowles Bog and leaves out a steep sand dune and a Lake Michigan beach.
Cowles Bog actually is a fen, long known in literature as a dismal place; in the ancient Anglo-Saxon tale of Beowulf, the frightening, fog-laden fen was the lair of the monster Grendel. At Cowles, the mineral-rich groundwater feeds the wetlands, where partially decomposed plants settle into a mire and form peat. Unlike the nearby Pinhook Bog, Cowles’ water isn’t acidic but quite alkaline.
To reach the trailhead, from Chicago head east on U.S. Hwy. 12 or from Michigan City, Ind., go west on the road. Near Porter, Ind., turn north onto N. Mineral Springs Road. Just before passing the Town of Dune Acres guardhouse, turn right/east into the Cowles Bog Trail parking area. Walk alongside the parking lot entry road back to the guardhouse and cross N. Mineral Springs Road. The trail heads west from there.
Cowles Bog
The first segment – a stem trail – cuts between an uplands on the right/north and the Cowles Bog on the left/south.
Red maple and yellow birch dominate the uplands, but paper birch, tamarack and white pine also can be found. The fen along the first part of the stem trail often is a referred to as a tamarack swamp.
Along the bog’s edge are a number of shrubs, especially poison sumac and spicebush. Blackberry, grape, red osier and witch hazel also can be spotted.
At 0.6 miles, the trail reaches the beginning of the first loop. Go right/northeast, staying on the loop’s north side.
Though about 8000 years old, Cowles Bog during the past century has undergone major changes thanks to agriculture and industrialization. Prior to the 1960s, the bog was noticeably open but since has become increasingly wooded. Hybrid cattails also have replaced a diverse sedge meadow. Beginning in 2009, the National Park Service began to restore the bog. Orchids notably have begun to return to it.
The trail reaches the second loop at 1.1 miles from the trailhead. Rather than head into the dunes, go left/southwest.
Black oak savanna
This segment of the first loops runs through a black oak savanna. The savanna is a mix of the Great Plains’ prairies and the East’s hardwood forests. As the black oak trees are spaced apart, sunlight bathes the open spaces, allowing for a number of meadow grasses and wildflowers to also flourish.
Interdunal ponds sit northwest of the savanna. You also may notice small hills rising on the horizon; these are forested dunes with Mount Bentley directly north and Mount Tuthill to the northwest. On the other side of the dunes is a Lake Michigan beach.
At 1.4 miles, the loop reaches a junction. Go left/southeast to stay on the first loop. You’re now officially on the Greenbelt Trail.
The path heads back into Cowles Bog. Little Lake soon appears on the trail’s left/north side. At about 1.7 miles, the trail curves away from the lake and heads along a strip of high ground between the Eastern Wetlands on the right/south and a pond on the left/north side.
A number of birds and insects make the bog their home. But white-tailed deer also find food and protection from predators there. In the past, beavers have moved into the surrounding wetlands.
Father of plant ecology
At 1.95 miles, the path junctions with the first loop’s east side. Turn left/northeast onto it. This puts you back on the the Cowles Bog Trail.
Cowles Bog stretches across the horizon on the trail’s right/east side. The bog was named for Henry Cowles, a University of Chicago botanist whose study of Lake Michigan sand dunes during the turn of the 19th to 20th centuries established him as North America’s “father of plant ecology.” The bog is the only remaining ecosystem of the “Central Dunes” that Cowles studied.
At 2.25 miles, the loop comes full circle. Go right/east onto the stem trail and retrace your steps back to the parking lot.
Insect repellent is an absolute must on this trail. As much of it is unshaded, be sure to don sunscreen, sunglasses and sunhat. Also, given this is a wetlands, hiking boots with good traction are necessary.
