Deam Lake Sate Park in Indiana is a great day trip. You can cool off and enjoy some beach time just 20 minutes from downtown Louisville.
Deam Lake is a hidden treasure for a day escape from Louisville to the BEACH! One thing that I am afraid of when it comes to the actual beach is the waves and my small children getting swept up. No worries about that at Deam Lake, it is very calm and relaxing!
Deam Lake is just about 20 minutes away from downtown Louisville and is very easy to find if you google the address. The beach area opens at 8am. We arrived at a little after 9am and it was completely empty. It was really nice to play when the sand was still cool and have our own “private” beach. When I got there I thought it was very dirty with trash everywhere, but it turns out that I was just there so early that they hadn’t been out to clean it up yet from the weekend. By 10 am, there was no trash to be found and all of the trash cans were emptied. As state parks go, it looked fairly well kept.
The sand is actually sand, not dirt. They must bring it in since there are tiny sea shells in it and it is a little rocky, so water shoes would be a plus but not necessary. As you walk in the water, the bottom is sandy as well. I was afraid it would be mushy or slimy, but it was just fine. The water was so warm and it was clear that you could look down and see the little fish swimming around. My kids loved that! Like I said, it was so calm and it didn’t get deep quickly, so my small children were able to play and splash around and stand! They had so much fun jumping all over the water since the pools we usually swim in are too deep for them to touch the bottom. Even though there are no life guards, I felt it was safe because it didn’t drop off and get deep. My kids would have had to be a good ways out before they could not stand, so as a parent in the water or near the water with your child, you should have time to react if they are headed to where it is deeper.
There are rowboat and kayak available for rent and there are concessions sold, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend. We didn’t partake in either of these, but I saw many people buying things at the stand. In the same building, very close to the beach, they have showers, restrooms, changing areas and lockers. Before 11am, they have an out house type building if you need to use the restroom. Across the parking lot, there is a playground but my kids had so much fun in the water and sand that we didn’t need to test that one out!
There are many picnic tables all over. Some are in the shaded, wooded area up on a hill next to the beach and others are fairly close to the beach. There are also some charcoal grills.
All in all, it is definitely worth the short drive. I overheard some people talking about how nice it was to be empty compared to the weekend so I suspect you might have quite a bit of company if you go on the weekend. Have fun!
There is a per vehicle fee of less than $10 to enter Deam Lake – very inexpensive.
