The Miller section of Gary, Indiana, is only three-quarters of an hour down the skyway from downtown Chicago, so visitors can easily drive out and stay the day. The quickest way to get there is to get off the Indiana Tollroad at the first exit past downtown Gary (the one for routes 12 and 20) and then proceed east on U.S. 20 to Lake Street. The Chicago South Shore & South Bend Railroad (312-782-0676) serves the community, but to really see the area it’s best to have a car.
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The Lakeshore (219-926-7561), a 13,000-acre federal park established in 1972, stretches east from Miller and is well worth a visit. To fully orient yourself, exit from I-94 at Indiana route 49; go east on U.S. 12 until you hit the visitor center, open from 8 AM to 6 PM daily. Or take the South Shore railroad and get off at the Kemil Road station.
Miller itself claims acres of Lakeshore property as well as the Paul H. Douglas Center for Environmental Education (100 S. Lake St., 219-938-0947). Named for the late Illinois senator who championed the Lakeshore, the Douglas center caters mostly to groups, but it’s open to families 8 AM to 4:30 PM Sunday. (Confidentially, if you stop by on any other day, and it’s slow at the center, you’ll get a guided tour anyway.) Interpreters conduct visitors through programs on folklore, wildflowers, and reptiles and amphibians. The programs start at the center headquarters but invariably move outdoors to explore the area, characterized by wetlands and dunes, all set under stands of oak trees.
Theodosia’s Elbow Room (200 W. 25th Ave., 219-882-1484) is a wood-paneled joint adjoining a liquor store. The eatery is called the Elbow Room because it once consisted of a narrow counter at which diners had to muscle for room. Long a favorite retreat of former Gary mayor Richard Hatcher, the Elbow Room serves daily specials, but one-stop visitors are advised to order the deep-fried catfish. “We make Catfish Digby’s look like a choirboy,” boasts current owner Lawrence Lipscomb.
