Waterfalls and Windmills in Indiana
Our recent Explore Indiana day trip included both waterfalls and windmills! If exploring waterfalls is something your family loves, this Indiana waterfalls road trip to Warren County in Northwestern Indiana should be added to your summer fun! Add a short stop in Benton County to check out the windmill farms and you’ve got a full day of adventure and education.
Williamsport, Indiana (a little less than a two-hour drive from Indianapolis). is home to not one, but two gorgeous waterfalls to explore. Although very different experiences, both are entertaining ways to get wet and enjoy the beauty of the state.
Waterfalls at a Nature Preserve
We started our trip at Fall Creek Gorge Nature Preserve. This lovely preserve is truly one of the most beautiful areas of Indiana I’ve discovered. Don’t worry when the GPS takes you a mile and a half down a gravel road – the hidden gem you’ll discover at the end is well worth the drive.
Insider tip: there aren’t any picnic grounds and the parking area is quite small, so plan accordingly – either enjoy lunch elsewhere or plan on eating in your car.
Once you arrive, follow a short trail down to the water. This first section contains a fairly large water area along with a series of small waterfalls. After a bit of splashing around, head up the stairs and hike a bit further upstream. The trail is narrow and high, so be careful.
We exited the second section and decided to walk the stream back to the entrance. There are several deep sections, and numerous potholes, so watch where you walk – I ended up waist-deep once or twice.
The best part of the trip back was walking down the waterfall. It was a challenge, especially with phones. Between my husband, son, and myself we managed though – even with our now very wet dog in tow! At the end of the hike, my son told us that he would go on these types of adventures any day – so I’d say this particular outing is a hit with teenage boys.
Insider tip: wear water shoes and consider a bathing suit or change of clothing too. Driving home in wet denim shorts wasn’t my best move.
Williamsport Falls
After hiking back to the car, we dried off with towels and headed back into town. Just outside of downtown Williamsport is another lovely area called Williamsport Falls. Touted as the 2nd tallest waterfall in Indiana, this area is obviously a hot spot for local families to cool off. After a short hike down to the water, there is plenty of space to play in the water and under the falls.
Windmills, Murals, and Shrimp Farms
On our way out of town, we crossed over into Benton County and made a quick pit stop at the Benton County Wind Corridor Kiosk. This interesting exhibit, right off of US-52 on your way into Fowler shares quite a bit of information about the three wind farms located in the area. These windmills are HUGE – part of the walkway to the kiosk shows the actual length of one of the windmill arms. It was very cool to get to visually see the size.
Downtown Fowler appears to be a small town working hard to revitalize. There was a darling Art Deco Theater as well as a beautiful mural with a bit of a gathering area in front of it. I suspect that on movie nights this is a fun place to be!
Our last stop on the way home was still in Benton County – RDM Shrimp Farm. Yes, there is a shrimp farm in Indiana. It surprised me too! They were about to close, but the owner was kind enough to let us take a quick peek into the back to see the many large tanks of shrimp. RDM supplies shrimp to many retail and wholesale buyers. Super interesting.
Overall, this trip to two Indiana counties was a success. I suspect we’ll head back to Fall Gorge Nature Preserve someday soon as that water hiking was a ton of fun. This Indiana waterfalls road trip was definitely a day worth repeating!
*This post may contain affiliate links*
Pin for later:
