Exploring Great Sand Dunes NP

When I arrived at Great Sand Dunes National Park on a Monday afternoon, it was hot and busy! I knew I wasn’t going to do any hiking, so I waited in line at the visitors center. Gosh, just standing there I was sweating! Enjoying this place would mean early mornings and lazy afternoons. After I chatted with the park ranger and bought my gifts, I headed to my camping site in the park and didn’t move again for the rest of the evening! Luckily, I could stay parked here during my stay, everything was accessible right from the campground.

So Day One was really the following day, a Tuesday. I woke early, did yoga, and headed to the Overlook Trail to see the magnitude of this place. On the way up, I was the only one on the trail. Although the sun was rising, it was still cool and I took my time admiring the flora. At the top, a comfy bench awaited me and I sat down to admire the giant sand dunes abutting the gray pointy mountains. This park is really neat, sand dunes, mountains, forest, streams. Who would have thought?

Soon another hiker and her dog joined me. We had a nice conversation and hiked part of the way down. It’s always nice to meet female travelers and hikers. We can connect easily over our shared loves.

When we parted ways, I headed for Point of No Return, which signals where the paved road meets the sand road. Don’t worry, I wasn’t entering dangerous territory. And neither was Sunny. She was parked back at the campground. We don’t like sand roads!

From there I headed to Sand Pit Picnic Area, where I stuck my sandy feet in the cold creek and stared up at the dunes looming on the far side. The water was cold and refreshing, trickling by from the last melting snow up in the mountains. No more than calf deep in places, it was easy to walk around and observe the patterns the changing flow made in the packed sand beneath.

Then, although it was getting warm, I hiked up a small dune. How could I not? I was so close. They were calling my name!

Up on top was magical. Sand glistened in the sun for miles in every direction. While the climb was difficult through loose sand, the top was flat and hard. Wind made ripples in the sand, carrying it from one spot to another. Barely visible footprints from earlier hikers dotted the landscape, showing the playground that the dunes are. You can go anywhere if you have the courage and stamina! Walking around, the gullies and ridges and peaks caught my attention and I played around capturing different angles. Little footprints of bugs and animals who were now hidden away were spotted. Waves of black sand swirled through the landscape. Nature’s canvas.

I sat down for a snack, watched a family run down the dune with their young child, and then did it myself! What fun! Then I walked down the creek, slowly, in the direction of the campground.

The mosquitos here were vicious, devouring me, so I had to make sure to splash water with my feet as I went. That wasn’t too bad. The cool moisture felt good on my hot skin. The gurgling of the creek was a good distraction too, every once in a while a surge of water coming through, rippling over the sand, from snow disappearing somewhere in the mountains.

When I reached the campground, I exited the stream and trudged through the hot sand to the brush. A short hike up led me to the camping sites, and eventually back to mine. There I cleaned off, settled in for a phone call with a friend, and relaxed.

As the evening arrived, storm clouds and thunder rolled over the dunes, but no rain ever appeared. The clouds created interesting shadows on the sand, and providing a spectacular dark sky above. I admired from inside the safety of my van until they had floated by. Then I headed to bed, an early night so I could get a good rest to climb those sand hills in the morning!

This native land of the Ute, Cheyenne, and Jicarilla Apache is wondrous.