Hike @ Pine Hills and Shades State Park

Hello everyone,

West Central Indiana has some of the best hiking in the state and Shades State Park and the Pine Hills Nature Preserve are two reasons why this is true. We'll be starting the hike with Pine Hills and then venture over to Shades for what will roughly be three to four hours on the trails all total. The terrain ranges from easy to rugged, so be prepared to tackle the rocky trails.

Our usual after-hike dinner will be taking place at the Mediterranean Grill (https://www.themedgrillavon.com/)in Avon, IN.

North-Side Car Pool Info: Our usual north-side car pool will be meeting along the west side of Broad Ripple High School (1115 Broad Ripple Avenue) in the free parking spots along Compton Street just south of Broad Ripple Avenue. The best places to park are directly beside the high school between Broad Ripple Avenue and 62nd Street. These spots are free on Saturdays and are usually wide open when we meet for the car pool. We'll be leaving at 11am on Saturday.

South-Side Car Pool Info: If anyone is interested in a south-side car pool, please contact hiking member Paul Hilton to let him know you'll be there. The meeting point will be 8711 Southeastern Avenue, which is about 1/2 mile south of the I-74 and Post Road exit. This location is Paul's office, so contact him with any questions and please arrive on time on Saturday morning at 11am.

Anyone who wants to meet us at the park can do so at the Pine Hills parking lot. The best way to get to Pine Hills is to travel as if you're on the way to Shades by taking IND 234, which will take you to the Shades entrance off of Country Road 800 South. Rather than taking the Shades entrance, continue on 234, which goes north and will take you directly to the Pine Hills parking lot, which will be on the left about a mile from the Shades entrance. A map of the Shades park with the location of nearby Pine Hills is located here (https://www.in.gov/dnr/parklake/files/shades_trail.pdf).

Please Note:
Car pool @ 11am
Hike @ 1pm

FEE UPDATE: Also, I'm not collecting any membership dues, and I won't be doing so anytime soon, so please be aware that no one needs to pay anything for being a member of the group.

If anyone needs to reach me on Saturday, my cell number is 317-966-3116.

See you on 2.13,
Michael