The “Opt Outside” campaign is back for another year. This time, national parks are asking for your help cleaning up.
Indiana Dunes National Park has announced its Opt Outside Black Friday hike and beach cleanup. The November 24 event invites guests to a family-friendly guided hike. The guides include numerous regional experts on birding, botany, insects, geology, and ecology. Along the way, park rangers are asking visitors to clean up any trash they come across.
REI started the Opt Outside initiative to avoid the shopping chaos and instead enjoy the great outdoors in 2015. Since the outdoor retailer rolled out the plan, it has become a popular tradition for outdoor enthusiasts.
Indiana Dunes is one of the newest national parks and also one of the most visited. The numbers are partly due to its proximity to major metropolitan areas like Chicago. People from the Windy City can even take a short train ride directly to the Indiana park.
The cleanup hikes will leave from the West Beach parking lot. Guests should arrive between 1:00 PM and 4:00 PM to join a guided hike that will run between 1 mile and 3.5 miles.
So far, no other national park has officially announced an Opt Outside event, but you’re always welcome to clean up the outdoors.
