Surely if you listen to this podcast you've heard the news — America now boasts 61 National Parks. Buried within a massive spending bill protecting public lands signed by the President on February 15, 2019, was a provision that simply stated: Public Law 89-761 is amended by striking National Lakeshore each place it appears and replacing it with National Park. Today's episode—the new Indiana Dunes National Park.

Like Joshua Tree, and Wind Cave, and Petrified Forest, Indiana Dunes National Park is much more than the singular characteristic it's named after. It features more than 1,100 native plants ranking it fourth in plant diversity among all National Park Service sites. It's full of mysterious wetlands, bright prairies, wandering rivers and tranquil forests. You can play on the massive sand dunes, but you can also harvest maple sugar from the park's historic farm.