Prophetstown State Park advisories
- The Indiana Department of Natural Resources has adjusted services, events and operations to protect Hoosiers and prevent further spread of COVID-19. Please visit on.IN.gov/dnrcovid19 for a listing of what is open, closed, restricted and canceled.
- FLOODING: Parts of Trails 3 and 4 occasionally flood. Use caution and do not cross flooded areas. Do not walk "off-trail" around flooded areas because there are many wetlands. If you encounter flooding, turn around. For up-to-date information about trail status, contact the park office.
- WRONG DIRECTIONS: Many mapping services (including Google Maps, Mapquest, and Apple Maps are providing incorrect driving directions to the park. Use Exit 178/SR 43 north of Lafayette to access the park. Do not use SR 225. There is no park entrance and the road has a one-lane bridge with a weight restriction.
- Description
Directions: Many mapping services are wrong. Take I-65 to Exit 178/SR 43 north of Lafayette. Go south on SR 43 for a very short distance and turn left onto Burnett Road. Take a right on Ninth Street to Swisher Road. This is a hard left immediately after the veterinary office. Once on Swisher Road, cross over I-65 and find the park gatehouse.
Indiana’s newest state park, Prophetstown is located where the Tippecanoe River meets the Wabash near the town of Battle Ground northeast of Lafayette. The park's landscape has been shaped by ice from glaciers, moving water, fire and human hands that helped maintain the vast tall prairie grass. Native American people hunted and lived along the two rivers for thousands of years.
During the summer, pool hours may change because of weather and staffing. Please contact the property office for exact times before your visit.
Through our unique partnership with The Farm at Prophetstown, visitors can discover 1920s farm lifestyles, Native American culture and take a stroll through 900 acres of restored prairie. We are restoring native habitats such as wetlands, wet slopes called fens, prairie and open woodlands.
Gate fee
Everyday including holidays, includes entrance into The Farm at Prophetstown.
- Noncommercial vehicles with Indiana license plates: $8.
- Noncommercial vehicles with out-of-state license plates: $10.
Aquatic Center
The Aquatic Center features a 30-foot tube slide, body flume, lazy river float area, adventure channel, zero-entry pool with play features, and an aquatic activity area with basketball. The bathhouse has showers, changing areas, restrooms, lockers (guest provides the lock) and a concession area.
The Aquatic Center is open Memorial Day through Labor Day. Operating hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Admission is $5 per person, with kids age 3 and younger free.
- Hours: Contact office before your visit.
- Cost: $5 per person, those ages three and younger are free.
- Rules.
History
The park is named for a Native American village located between the rivers established by Tecumseh, who was Shawnee, and his brother Tenskwatawa (The Prophet) in 1808. Tecumseh led his band there from Ohio, where pressure from white settlers had forced him to leave. Tecumseh believed the only way to repel the advance of European settlement was to form an alliance with other tribes. He traveled widely persuading tribes to join his coalition. More than 14 tribes set aside centuries-old disputes to stop their common enemy. They met at Prophetstown, and heard The Prophet speak. Tecumseh anticipated their sheer numbers would be enough to stop the westward settlement.
William Henry Harrison, governor of the Indiana Territory, was alarmed by the numbers at Prophetstown, and moved 1,200 troops to the site while Tecumseh was south gathering additional support. Wanting to avoid a fight, yet fearing an attack, The Prophet decided to strike first in the early morning hours of Nov. 7, 1811. The battle lasted two hours. As darkness faded, the villagers withdrew through the marsh back to Prophetstown, then fled to Wildcat Creek. Harrison's men burned Prophetstown to the ground.
- Activities
- Shelters (reservations)
- Hiking trails
- Bicycle trail
- Camping
- Interpretive Naturalist Services
Aquatic Center
- Hours: Contact office for hours.
- Cost: $5 per person, those ages three and younger are free.
- Rules.
Camping - See campground maps under MAPS tab
- Full hook-up: 55 sites
- Electric: 55 sites
- Dumping station
INFORMATION
Nearby Places
- Description of Hiking Trails
Note: For trail locations, view the property map under the MAPS tab.
1. EASY (2.25 miles)—Starts at the Meadow View family picnic parking lot and winds through a former Christmas tree plantation of Douglas Fir and then snakes its way through tallgrass prairie, adjacent to the Prairie View group picnic area, with big bluestem, Indian grass, little bluestem, side oats grama, and black-eyed Susan. The trail continues into a fen and meanders through this marshy area, where you may get your feet wet, before entering a field being invaded by osage orange, wild cherry, mulberry, and multiflora rose. The trail ends at the Meadow View family picnic area parking lot.
2. MODERATE (1.9 miles)—Begins on Trail 1, north of the Blazingstar picnic shelter in the Prairie View group picnic area. The trail meanders through the tallgrass prairie before entering a shaded path along scenic Harrison Creek. Spring and summer wildflowers treat hikers to a stunning display of color as the trail winds through a mixed deciduous forest, past a pond formed by Harrison Creek, and into the fen. The trail continues through a mature sycamore grove before merging with Trail 1 at the fen boardwalk north of the campground.
3. MODERATE (3.5 miles) – Begins off of trail 2 near the east end of the pond and follows a gravel road eventually leading to the confluence of the Wabash and Tippecanoe Rivers where the trail becomes a dirt path. Before reaching the rivers while walking through a large, floodplain prairie, a visitor will observe large wetland restoration projects, a large bottomland forest replacement tree planting, and a river bank stabilization project along the Wabash River that were a joint effort between the DNR and INDOT. The trail will then lead along the Tippecanoe River, cross a bottomland prairie and will lead hikers to a contour trail providing stunning overlooks of perched fens formed by many hillside seeps. The trail will end near the starting point of the trail just uphill from the north end of the pond. Note, this trail will be closed during flood events.
4. EASY (2.1 miles) – Begins at trail 3 near the Tippecanoe River and meanders through a heavily shaded floodplain forest following the river until entering into a floodplain prairie. The trail will lead hikers to the furthest northern boundary of the park where it will return upon the same path back to the trail 3. Note, this trail will be closed during flood events.
BIKE / HIKING TRAIL (3.5 miles)—EASY: This initial paved section starts near the park gatehouse and connects all the current facilities at the state park. The trailhead parking lot can accommodate 20 vehicles. The Meadow View family picnic parking lot serves as another trailhead, providing a modern restroom, water and picnic shelter.
PLEASE STAY ON MARKED TRAILS.
- Maps
- Photos & Video
