I wish well I could say I had hiked more of the Great Sand Dunes , but the threat of a late good afternoon summer monsoon — common in Southern Colorado that time of year — loomed above us and forced us to retreat . Still , the word-painting of this otherworldly landscape painting were just too beautiful not to share .
Not far fromPenitente Canyon , Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserveencompasses over 30 straight mile near Alamosa , Colorado , in an arid plain between the San Juan and Sangre de Cristo Ranges . Surrounding the dune fields is a vacation spot of rude habitats , place from pinyon true pine forests to maintain wetlands .
you’re able to hike , coast , sled , sandboard , or tumble down the grainy faces of the dunes , packsack to the alpine tundra of the Sangre de Cristos , or splash and skimboard in Medano Creek .
From a distance , the sand dune front like a giant sand box that ’s no less spectacular — but comparatively dwarfed — against the 13,000 - foot - magniloquent bill of the Sangre de Cristos rising above them . Only as you drive nearer does the vastness and nobility of the dunes really stir the sess .
The Great Sand Dunes rise 750 foot above the San Luis Valley , making them the tallest sand dune in North America . They begin mold around 440,000 year ago and now straggle across 19,000 acres in the foothill of the Sangre de Cristos . Over millenia , sand and gravel from the Rio Grande and its affluent flow out of the San Juan Mountains into the high desert vale . Prevailing southwesterly winds then picked up these sand deposit from flood champaign and deport them toward the Sangre de Cristos , piling the particles up against the base of the mountains .
Heavy winds continually remold the crests of the sand dune , and sometimes even migrate modest dunes by several foot in a week . Despite this , the dune arena show remarkable permanence due to contradict wind in the later summer months that carry moxie back toward the southwest . It ’s this back and forth movement of windblown corpuscle that piles the sand up vertically and makes the sand dune so tall and stable .
Since the sand dune exist from wind , there was no shortage of a good windstorm in the valley . With the impending monsoon come powerful gusts of wind that feel like we were being sandblast by razor sharp specks — not a fun situation to be enamour in for long .
We were able to run off the dunes and take cover charge behind some trees , while handfuls of grit get their way into our shoes , our socks , even our underwear .
But the monsoon break down almost as quickly as it came , and the post - storm glow from a waning sun spew some awing vestige on the dunes …
… Just as awe-inspiring as this fiery sunset that peeked out from behind lingering tempest clouds and mountain peaks .
