A Snapshot and The Scoop: The Panne, An East Coast Epic Story

Created by wind and water, shallow bowls form among the dunes at Indiana Dunes National Park. If they're deep enough they can reach the water table, bringing fresh water to the surface and creating a little oasis away from the windy churning depths of Lake Michigan. These bowls, called a panne, house and shelter a variety of plant species that would otherwise find it difficult to grow on the dunes at the mercy of the winds, which in turn create excellent cover for small mammals to thrive. The panne I visited early in the morning of my visit to the park was almost perfectly still with only a little breeze ruffling the waters, despite the steady winds coming across the lake just over the lip of the bowl. Toads croaked from the shoreline and a couple of waterfowl rustled in the nearby reeds; the world waking up to a new day on the lake.