Gary Indiana Gary Indiana

July 11, 2009 7:53 AM

Riding bike from Chicago to Gary, Indiana— what to do in Gary?

I'm riding with some friends to Gary tomorrow, wondering if anyone has suggestions on places in Gary to see. We're interested in the old, rusting industrial parts of the city, interesting places to eat, obviously going to be stopping by the Jackson house. Any other really interesting places to go to and photograph? Any neat things to see along the way on the ride? Thanks.

posted by Sreiny to Travel & Transportation around Gary, IN (5 answers total)

What route are you taking (out of curiosity)?
I think that Gary Aquatorium is pretty neat looking for photography and is almost a serene as Gary gets.
As far as what's cool along the way, it highly depends on whether you're interested in freight trains and brownfields or not. I say this without sarcasm for indeed I enjoy these things.
Buildings wise, although you can't get super close, the state-line power plant is a cool building. It's on the lake, at the state line... can't miss it.
posted by Cold Lurkey at 9:48 AM on July 11, 2009

I don't recommend being there on your own at night. I'm not kidding. There's a lot of sketchy areas around there, so I hope you're planning on being there during the day.

By car, the drive from the casinos back to Chicago at night is amazing - the place looks like Micronaut City... it's scary/weird/sad... Definitely lots of crazy industrial structure, lighting, etc...

Sorry I don't have specific places for you to go, but I just wanted to say that you should be really careful where you wander at night. Be street smart and be safe!
posted by twiggy at 1:46 PM on July 11, 2009

Response by poster: We're heading down in the morning, coming back before it gets dark. Thanks for the concern twiggy. And Cold Lurkey, I also enjoy freight trains and brownfields, so I look forward to the ride there.
posted by Sreiny at 4:30 PM on July 11, 2009

Uh, stay OUT of Gary. I've been through there and heard gunshots plenty of times. If you insist on going, the more of you there are together, the better. Don't make eye contact with anyone on the street.
posted by IndigoRain at 9:22 PM on July 11, 2009

Response by poster: Just an update, we ended up driving, which for first time to Gary was probably the better idea. I didn't find it dangerous or unsafe, I found it completely empty. Like a bombed-out city. We went to the Central Methodist Church, a huge, beautiful gothic-style church downtown that's been abandoned since 1975. Also the abandoned post office, very beautiful and almost surreal inside. The floor covered in moss and trees growing inside. We then headed down to the Jackson home where we met Mayor Rudy Clay! We ended the day playing frisbee in this hilly park down the street from a Frank Lloyd Wright house. All in all a good day. Didn't hear any gunshot, made eye contact, spoke with some really nice people. Thanks for everyone's help. Pictures will be on my flickr, which is linked in my profile. Cheers.
posted by Sreiny at 4:12 PM on July 12, 2009