The National Park Service, along with the City of Gary, hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony on Nov. 4 for the new pedestrian bridge at Indiana Dunes National Park’s Paul H. Douglas Center for Environmental Education.
With the new pedestrian bridge in place, the center will again be able to safely host school children attending ranger-led education programs in addition to a wide variety of public programming for the community and national park visitors.
During the ceremony, Indiana Dunes National Park Superintendent Jason Taylor emphasized, “The bridge isn’t really the main point,” Taylor said. “You can now safely, easily and quickly get from the parking lot area to the Paul H. Douglas Trail through the woods, where things get really special.”
The Paul H. Douglas Center for Environmental Education is the gateway to the stunning Miller Woods. The facility connects visitors to the natural environment through educational hands-on exhibits, ranger-guided hikes and school program, lectures, animals, crafts, and a Nature Play Zone.
For more information on the center go to our Douglas Center page at https://www.nps.gov/indu/planyourvisit/deec.htm
To learn more about education in the park visit our park’s education page at https://www.nps.gov/indu/learn/education/index.htm
Image 1: Photo of ribbon-cutting, opening the walkway on the bridge (left to right: Gary Chief Communication Officer Erica Blackwell, Gary 1st District Councilwoman Lori Latham, founder of Brown Faces Green Spaces, Kimmie Gordon, director of the outreach program Kip Walton, and Park Superintendent Jason Taylor.)
Image 2: Perspective photo viewing into the walkway of the bridge.