The boys had heard about this place and were excited to come. They all wanted to hit the splash pad. Weather was nicer than expected, with temperatures in the mid 70s and low humidity. We came for the kids' sake and did what they wanted to do. We started out at the beach-area park, then moved to the splash pad when everyone had gotten hot enough in the sun.
The boys loved the water and I enjoyed watching them. Ben and Owen are close in age and do everything together. Ben emulates Owen and followed him everywhere and together they splashed in the water. The water shoots up from the ground in various lengths. When the streams stop, everyone runs off the pad because 30 seconds later, the more powerful water canons come on, and mist blows in the direction of the wind, getting more spectators wet. Dogs aren't allowed on the pad, so we had to find shade for Zeke. When there was no shade, I used my towel to keep him cool.
The sand was hot even for us. Dogs aren't allowed on the beach so when the boys went back to the playground to warm up again, I walked the pier to the adjacent lighthouse to cool off Zeke's paws and continued on the jetty. Dogs were allowed here.
I walked out as far as I could go. The breeze here was refreshing. A buoy painted with graffiti is on the end of this narrow pier. The lighthouse is across the inlet. Private Boats were coming and going. Waves were forming, but they weren't as strong as they have been in Indiana, where dangerous rip tides have claimed the life of a 17-year-old today. He ignored warnings to stay out of the water and went in anyway, never to be seen again.
We stayed for three hours. When we got hungry, we just went to the Silver Beach Pizza place on the south side of the park and ordered the pizza to go, eating right there near the splash pad on the lawn. There were trash bins just for the pizza boxes. People kept the area clean.
With Erin and Nick needing to get back to work tomorrow, we left the park at 3 for the hour drive back to Westville, IN. Traffic on the roads heading south was congested, which only stressed out Nick. He stresses easily and loses patience easily. I stayed long enough to join them for leftover hamburgers.
I left for Crown Point while still daylight, stopping at the New Oberphalz brewpub in Griffith. It's a small place with a dog-friendly patio. I like the Helles Lager and buy that regularly from the grocery store, so I had a Hefeweizen and left, wanting to stop by the 95ate5 (weird name) brewpub in St John. There I had a pleasant porter. The brewpub has a full menu. It's located inside an industrial park, but the interior is rather dark, but spacious. Both breweries are part of the South Shore brewery tour. I now have just one more brewpub to go to finish the tour.
I got back to Carol's place just after sunset.
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