Feeling Small at Great Sand Dunes

What do you do when you’ve seen Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes and Guadalupe Nippomo Sand Dunes? Try to squeeze in a trip to Great Sand Dunes National park, when in Colorado! 😉

We did just that.

It was a July afternoon that we set out to the national park in southern Colorado. And as we were nearing the national park in the southern part of the state, we spotted the towering Sangre de Cristos and at its feet some tawny, wavy patches, which obviously was the sand. It was when we drove closer to it that we saw the height and the vastness of those sand dunes. The viewing area behind the visitor center treated us to a broad panoramic view of the natural phenomenon that is protected here. 

Later, we drove to the Dunes Parking Lot and then walked across a field of sand to get to the dunes. That was a memorable walk. We’d chosen to visit in the evening when the sun wouldn’t be so sharp because it was in the middle of summer that we were there. Yet it was exhausting to walk across that flat sand-field with our feet sinking into it and the wind playing havoc with our hair. But it sure was fun. How could it not be, I was walking with my bestie and the view in front of us was nothing short of extraordinary. 

As we inched closer to the dunes, they seemed to continue to soar. The wind whooshed around and seemed to be ever-so-delicately sifting the sand. There were a lot of people out there but the sheer size of the dunes turned us into diminutive figures, making sure the sand was the cynosure. 

This National Park named after its grand dunes is home to the tallest Sand Dunes in North America and has an interesting story spun by a natural phenomenon. These, like the dunes we saw in Death Valley owe their existence to the mountains around it. 

How the Great Sand Dunes came about —

In Death Valley, it was the Panamint Range that was responsible for the dunes. Here in the San Luis Valley where the Great Sand Dunes are, there are two different sets of mountains that build up this dune system. The San Juan Mountains to the west of this area and the Sangre de Cristos to the east. 

The snowmelt, the rain, and the wind erode the mountains in the area and carry tiny particles down to the valley and deposit them at a corner of San Luis Valley. The seasonal creeks in the area also play a role here by transporting some of the debris. And in the summer months when the water dries up, the wind takes charge and carries the sand from the riverbeds and banks to the foothills of the Sangre de Cristos. 

Another interesting thing to note is that the sand dunes here are pitted against Southwesterly winds blowing from one direction and the Northeasterlies from another, keeping the dunes intact at one end of the valley. These winds should also be given credit for piling the sand into high dunes during the tussle. 

Did you know:

… that these sand dunes here in Great Sand Dunes National Park are the tallest ones in North America? And the tallest dune here is around 750 ft in height? 

…that there are 330 square miles of sand deposited here in this national park?

…that you can hike on the dunes?

…that you can even sandboard down the dunes here?

… that you can slide down the dunes ?

Do you know any more interesting facts about this national park in CO? Have you visited this park that’s known for its humungous dunes?

Or have you visited another dune system that made you totally tipsy from the sights? I’d love to know (and read about it if you have a blogpost/social media post about it. 🙂

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