Ron Seman was known as the master of the Indiana Dunes trails, spending years joyfully guiding thousands of people on journeys through its natural wonders.
Seman unexpectedly died in his sleep sometime late Thursday or early Friday at his Chesterton home, his family said. He was 64.
On the day before Father’s Day, Seman had led a group on a “monster” trek on 16 miles of dunes trails. He suffered from what he thought was indigestion the next day, said Susan Seman, his wife.
Seman went to Franciscan Health Michigan City on June 22, where he was diagnosed with having had a heart attack and had a stent implanted before he was sent home. Seman had even posted a short video on social media, stating he was feeling better and thanking everyone for their prayers and good wishes.
“He loved introducing people to the Indiana Dunes, encouraging others to get outside, appreciate nature and experience the peace and beauty that hiking can bring. Whether you joined him on a hike, shared a photo, asked a question or simply followed along, you were part of something that brought him incredible joy,” said Christian Seman, Ron’s only son, in a social media post.
As a youngster growing up in Whiting, Seman’s family didn’t have a car. The family would ride their bicycles to the Indiana Dunes, where they would spend the day and sometimes camp overnight. It was the start of a lifelong love of the dunes.
Seman had done well in a career in computer technology and retired early.
Moving to Chesterton, Seman began visiting the dunes daily in 2005, at first taking along his beloved golden retriever, Aslan.
Seman would meet people on the trail who would ask him questions about plant life, and he would do research to find the answers.
It was around 2016 that Seman got the idea: “Man, why don’t I just organize some hikes? Then everyone can learn together,” according to a November 2022 interview in AARP magazine.
Seman said in that interview that he enjoyed the diversity of the people he would take on a hike. There would be someone from a farm community alongside someone who lived on the 40th floor in the city.“When we’re hiking, we feed off of one another’s energy. People are changed by being out in nature and by challenging themselves,” Seman said in the AARP magazine interview. He estimated that he led about 4,000 people each year on trail hikes.
Susan Seman said that her husband would go to the dunes two or three times a day. The white-haired and bearded Seman never slowed down until the last few days of his life, as he would organize hikes through social media and had a regular crew that would accompany him.
One group he led weekly on a trail hike was for people in recovery.
“He always wanted to help people with troubles because he felt nature would heal any problems,” Susan Seman said.
Sometimes, Seman would have what he would call “Church on the Trail.” He enjoyed talking with people about spiritual issues, his wife said.
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Tiffany Yorek, 42, of Chesterton, was a regular on Seman’s trail hikes.
“Ron was the kind of a person who made you feel like you knew him your whole life,” Yorek said. “He was kind and accepting and had a way of bringing people together.”
Yorek recalls how Seman dropped everything and drove her at high speed to Northwest Health-Porter after she went into anaphylactic shock. She said he couldn’t stay because he was scheduled to take a group out on a dunes hike, but arranged for another person to be there with her at the hospital.
Seman had two phones and was always communicating with people online.“He made himself available to so many people,” Yorek said, noting that Seman had a gift for listening.
During their trail treks, Seman would drop his pearls of wisdom.
“Nature is healing,” and, “People need to get out of their toxic drywall box,” were among his favorite phrases.
Seman would go out on trail walks, even when it was raining or snowing, Yorek said.“There is no bad weather, there are just ill-prepared hikers,” Seman would say.
Now, he’s gone. But Yorek said that Seman’s work lives on because of how he created a community.
“He connected so many people. He keeps giving after he’s gone,” Yorek said.
Funeral arrangements are pending. His survivors include his wife, son, daughter-in-law and so many who shared his love of the Indiana Dunes.
Jim Woods is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.