Last week my husband and I traveled to south central Colorado. One of the highlights of our trip was our visit to Great Sand Dunes National Monument. The Great Sand Dunes - the tallest sand dunes in North America - were spectacular.
The Great Sand Dunes lie in the San Luis Valley at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The San Luis Valley is a dry valley formed by the San Juan Mountains on the west and the Sangre de Cristos on the east. The dunes, which reach heights of 750 feet, were formed by winds that carry sand across the valley.
The best way to explore the Great Sand Dunes is to hike them. Visitors to Great Sand Dunes are free to hike any area of the dunes that they wish. We hiked up and over several sets of dunes until we reached the crest of one of the highest dunes. From there we had a fabulous view of the Sangre de Cristos and the valley below. Hiking the dunes was a also great workout. Climbing the dunes wasn't easy, especially since they are at an altitude of about 8000 feet.
The Great Sand Dunes didn't appear to support much life. We saw a few insects, some grasses, a plant called scrufpea, and prairie sunflowers. The green plants provided a nice contrast against the sand.
The dunes were also a lot of fun to photograph. I love to make photographs patterns and curves and the Great Sand Dunes provide an almost limitless supply. Some of my favorite subjects were the smooth, sweeping curves of dune crests, wind-blown ripples of sand, and clumps of prairie sunflowers. The Sangre de Cristo Mountains also provided a great backdrop for wider landscape shots.
The Great Sand Dunes are constantly changing. Wind adds new sand to the dunes all the time. In addition, wind and rain create new patterns on the surface of the dunes each day. The next time I visit the dunes I'm sure that I will find plenty of new things to explore. Here are a few photos from the trip.
- Great Sand Dunes from the San Luis Valley
- Dune crest
- Prarie sunflowers growing in sand
- View from the top of the dunes
- My husband, Tom, climbing a dune
