INDIANA - The Indiana Department of Natural Resources is offering free admission Saturday to many state parks as part of National Public Lands Day, the largest single-day volunteer effort in the United States.
The free admission includes state parks, state forests, state recreation areas and fish and wildlife areas. The exception is Johnson Township’s Hardy Lake, which will instead offer free admission on Sunday.
The volunteer opportunities vary across the state, from invasive species removal to trail maintenance to playground repair.
And, it’s not limited to state parks – the newly-incorporated Indiana Dunes National Park will partner with reusable straw company Mermaid Straw and outdoor gear retailer REI to host a park cleanup from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday.
Check out a complete list of volunteer opportunities at DNR properties below:
- Blue Grass Fish & Wildlife Area – NPLD Cleanup, 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.
- Cagles Mill Lake – NPLD "210th Anniversary 10 O'clock Treaty Line", all day
- Chain O’Lakes State Park – NPLD Invasive Species Round-Up, 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.
- Clifty Falls State Park – NPLD Park Clean-Up, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
- Fort Harrison State Park – NPLD clearing invasive bush honeysuckle, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
- Mississinewa Lake – NPLD Weed Wrangle Indiana, 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
- O’Bannon Woods State Park – NPLD River Sweep, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Ouabache State Park – NPLD Event TBA
- Potato Creek State Park – NPLD Volunteer Day, 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Prophetstown State Park – NPLD Invasive Species Removal, 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
- Salamonie Lake – NPLD Nature Play Area Repair, 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.
- Summit Lake State Park – NPLD Event TBA
- Tippecanoe River State Park – NPLD Volunteer Event, all day
- Whitewater Memorial State Park – NPLD Volunteer Call Out, 10 a.m. to 10:40 a.m.
