Portage Real Estate Listings of Houses and Homes for Sale in Porter County, Indiana


	Portage Houses for Sale

Portage

Portage was designated as a township in the 1830s, though its true history goes much farther back. The region was once the homeland of Native American tribes, including the Weas and the Potawatomi, which enjoyed the landscape and proximity to the water. Portage’s first trading post was opened in 1822, and the establishment of schools and a transportation infrastructure soon followed. When steel mills began to crop up in Gary, Portage’s neighbor to the west, the region responded with tremendous residential and economic growth.

Portage’s most popular recreation activities today are the ones involving the outdoors. The city’s solid parks and recreation program provides a great base for residents who enjoy sports and the open air. Imagination Glen Park, Woodland Park, Gilbert Park and Countryside Park provide softball, baseball and soccer fields and volleyball, basketball and tennis courts. The city system also offers classes in a variety of interests, including martial arts, fishing and archery.

Portage’s public marina and several private marinas allow for boating and fishing on Lake Michigan. Neighboring communities also have several casino riverboats, for high style entertainment.

The jewel of the region, however, is the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. Covering 15,000 acres and almost 25 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline, the park is home to more than 1,400 plant species. Some of these are considered threatened or endangered by the state of Indiana. With diverse vegetation, sand dunes, marshes, and forests, Indiana Dunes allows visitors to explore nature at their leisure. As well, the site is home to an early-20th century farm and a 1830s-style French Canadian homestead.

The climate of Portage is characterized by cool, partly cloudy summers and white winters. Average temperatures range from the low 20s in January to the low 80s in July. January is usually the coolest month of the year, averaging about five degrees cooler than December and February. Average annual precipitation in Portage is about 38 inches. Snow falls between November and March; January snowfall alone averages about 12 inches.