Amelia Brooks

A cooler in the trunk and a country road ahead make for a pretty good Saturday plan. In northeast Indiana, a small farm outside Auburn gives that plan a purpose. Families there stock their freezers with beef and eggs from a farm they can actually talk to, and some have been doing it for years. […]

A forest with a swamp, a creek, a boardwalk, and a very old graveyard sits in Fishers, and plenty of people drive right past it. The trails are short enough for a lunch break, yet they cover grassland, woods, and wetland in a single loop. Families, dog walkers, and early risers already know it well,

North of Kokomo, a stretch of Indiana farm country holds an active Air Force installation with a story that reaches well beyond the runway. A small museum tied to the base has drawn aviation fans who like their history up close and a little hands-on. The details are still worth checking before a drive, because

You go in for one coffee mug and walk out with a lamp, a quilt fabric stash, and a pair of boots. That is how the biggest thrift stores in Indiana work. From Evansville to Valparaiso, these eight spots have wide aisles, deep back rooms, and racks that keep going. Some are run by missions

A garden in northern Indiana lets you hunt for your own birthday in the ground. Kids race around a circle of bricks, calling out dates, until someone shouts that they found theirs. Beyond the bricks, a pond holds frogs and turtles, and every corner of the grounds belongs to a different season. It sits on

Some summer nights in Randolph County start with a car, a blanket, and a screen glowing against the dark. A family decided an old drive-in deserved another run, and the lights came back on. Now two screens show new releases, adults pay $10 at the gate, and kids under five get in free. Regulars drive

Southwestern Indiana has a downtown that seems made for a holiday movie, and plenty of Hoosiers still have not made the drive. It sits in Dubois County, home to just over 6,000 people, and it has a reputation for antique shops lined up along its main streets. The season for twinkling lights is close, which

A creek that crosses the trail three times, rocks that hold fossils, and a covered bridge tucked into the hills of southeastern Indiana. This is the kind of spot that makes a Saturday drive feel like a small expedition. It sits near the river town of Versailles, and plenty of Hoosiers drive right past it

Some people set the GPS for an hour and change, just to leave a small Indiana town with a pie box on the passenger seat. Winchester sits in Randolph County, and one corner spot there has pie fans lining up with real purpose. Sugar cream pie is the Indiana state pie, and this is the

Twice a year, a tiny Ohio County town in southeastern Indiana fills up with vendors, crafters, and curious shoppers who all seem to be hunting the same thing: a good story and a better deal. Some families have been making this trip for decades, and a few say it started before they were born. The

A shop that has outlasted more than 160 years of Indiana weather, fashion trends, and changing roads sits just around the bend from a well-known waterfall. Its shelves hold old toys, vintage glass, and a soda lineup that gets teenagers talking. The doors open only a few days a week, so a little planning pays

Two children slid through a sinkhole in the 1800s and found a hidden world below the farmland of Crawford County. They kept it secret for three days, which is a long time for kids with a find that big. Today, that underground world holds delicate soda straws, glittering flowstone, and a ceiling made of mud

A drive-thru window, a patio with a few spots to sit, and a menu built around the coney dog. That is the whole plan on the east side of Fort Wayne, and it has kept people coming back for decades. Some folks make a special trip across town. Others stopped in 25 years ago and

A tray hangs on a car window, a frosted mug sits on top, and a coney dog waits underneath. That scene still plays out every day in Lafayette, Indiana, where a classic drive-in keeps drawing a steady crowd. Locals talk about it with the kind of loyalty usually saved for hometown teams. This article walks

Some families in Morgan County have a fall date on the calendar that never moves. They gather in the morning, head out to the rows, and fill their bags straight from the trees. The ritual has lasted for years, and some folks say they have not missed a season yet. Behind it is a Mooresville

A gnome garden, a folk dance group, and a patio tucked behind a park drive sound like a lot for one south side stop. Yet that is the setup waiting at the end of a quiet road in Indianapolis. The place has been serving German plates for years, and plenty of locals still have not

A gravel road, a locked gate, and a creek that slips into the hillside. That is the opening scene for a small patch of southern Indiana that most Hoosiers have never walked. Near Campbellsburg, a stream disappears into rock and a cold flow of water pours out of a cave mouth nearby. The trails are

A steady line of cars rolls into a little lot on Indianapolis’ west side, and nobody gets out to order. Headlights flick on, and a server heads straight over. This old-school drive-in has been a Hoosier habit for years, and it still draws road trippers, locals, and even a few folks who saw it on

Some roads in southern Indiana seem to lead nowhere, and then a cafeteria line appears at the end of one. Drivers headed toward French Lick, Holiday World, or the Hoosier National Forest often spot a few billboards and wonder if the detour is worth it. Plenty of travelers say yes, and some plan whole trips

Some roadside stops earn a reputation one burger tray at a time. In Highland, Indiana, a classic drive-in has been collecting loyal fans for decades, and some of them say they have been showing up since the 1980s or since childhood. The crowd arrives for burgers, thick shakes, car shows, and bands playing right in

Southern Indiana has a river adventure that plenty of locals still have not tried. It starts in Madison, runs along the Ohio, and can reach as far as Frankfort, Kentucky. Along the way, bald eagles perch in the trees, captains swap stories about river towns, and a fast jet boat keeps things lively. Some folks

A 19th-century dairy barn sits at the end of a country road north of Indianapolis, and a surprising number of people zoom past without a second look. Inside, a working farm turns out dinners that locals brag about to every out-of-town guest. The kitchen builds its menu around what the farm makes and grows. Cows

Somewhere in the Indiana woods, a trail marked with white diamonds sends runners and hikers on a long loop through creek beds, steep climbs and one spot where people have wandered off course. Near an old cemetery, the path gets tricky enough that at least one trail runner ended up on a road before finding

Racks of dresses, a wall of shoes, and a trade-in counter that pays out the same day. A secondhand shop on the northeast side of Indianapolis packs all of that under one roof, and shoppers keep coming back to see what changed since last week. The stock rotates often, so no two trips look alike.

A weathered red barn sits just off a two lane road in Corydon, tucked behind a screen of trees. From the outside it looks like a quiet country building, nothing more. Step through the door, though, and three floors of booths from more than 40 dealers wait for you, packed with glass, tools, games, toys

Long before most of Northwest Indiana has hit the snooze button twice, a line is already forming outside a small donut shop in Munster. Cars fill the lot, boxes get stacked high, and regulars swap tips on what to grab. This is the kind of old-school spot that Hoosiers drive across the county for, and

Indiana has a long list of flea markets, and a few of them are big enough to eat up an entire day. Some sit in farm country, some fill fairgrounds, and some live indoors with rows of vendor booths. All eight on this list offer the kind of variety where a single twenty can turn

Southern Indiana hides a whole second landscape under its fields and hills. Step through a cave entrance and the temperature drops, the daylight fades, and you are somewhere that feels far from any Indiana road. This list covers six caves and caverns you can actually visit, from guided walking tours to underground boat rides to

Somewhere west of Indianapolis, a Hendricks County park holds ridges, a river, a prairie and a covered-bridge float, and plenty of Hoosiers have never turned onto its road. It does not shout for attention, and that is part of the appeal. Trails here wander through marsh, forest and open grass without crowds getting in the

Some of Indiana’s best Sunday drives end at places most people drive right past. This list covers seven quiet spots across the state, from a mill that has been grinding flour for generations to a canal town with a boat ride and a vintage train. You will find shaded ravines, waterfalls, a covered bridge, and

Auburn, Indiana, has a building where the cars are parked so close together that finding a path is part of the adventure. Trucks, race cars, motorcycles, tractors and shelves of diecast models all share the same roof. Some of the vehicles were built right here in Indiana, and a few are one-of-a-kind oddities. Kids come

A wagon rolls across a northern Indiana field, and a zebra walks right up to the side with its nose out for a snack. That is an ordinary afternoon in Amish country near Shipshewana. This seasonal animal park mixes a walk-in petting area with a wagon safari, and each guest gets a bowl of feed

Ask a few retirees where they would settle if they could pick any Indiana town, and a certain name keeps coming up in low voices. It sits south of the capital, tucked among hills, a college campus, and a national forest. Museums, a historic house, and wooded trails all sit within a short drive of

A parking lot full of folding chairs and open tailgates sounds like game day, but this crowd is waiting on dinner. Out on a quiet country road in Delaware County, Indiana, people show up an hour early just to start the evening in the gravel. A friendly outdoor cat greets arrivals, a porch serves as

A walk through the woods near Anderson turns into a trip back about 2,000 years. Earthen rings built long before Indiana had a name still sit beside the White River, and plenty of Hoosiers drive right past them. Locals keep calling this park a rival to any national park, and the reasons stack up fast.

A showroom built in the roaring twenties is still standing in northeast Indiana, and the cars inside look ready for a Sunday drive. Collectors of handmade luxury automobiles would pay close attention to this one. The building is bigger than it looks from the street, with three levels of rare machines, original offices, and a