Bev and I
agreed we could have spent more time in the Durango area but, alas, we had
reservations to keep so we headed out Monday morning for the 377 mile drive up
to Denver. Lea Ann Brown, HighlandsRanch Foodie, had mentioned that the Great Sand Dunes
were a must see and I wasn’t sharp enough to stop there during our 120 mile
shorter drive into Durango, so we stopped on our way north.
With Lea
Ann’s recommendation and the view from Google Earth there was no way to by-pass
it when we were right there and it added only an hour to our trip. You can see the dunes from US-160 and it’s
hard to believe it’s a 19 mile drive up to them. They set up against the west side of the Sangre
de Cristo Range and per Wikipedia “The dunes were formed from sand and soil
deposits of the Rio Grande and its tributaries, flowing through the San Luis
Valley. Over the ages, westerly winds picked up sand particles from the river
flood plain. As the wind lost power before crossing the Sangre de Cristo Range,
the sand was deposited on the east edge of the valley. This process continues,
and the dunes are slowly growing. The wind changes the shape of the dunes
daily.”
We just
drove thru America’s newest national park and snapped a few photos as we looked
in awe. The people who looked like ants walking
on the dunes gave us a perspective as to their size (I didn't have enough lens for you to see them) and Lea Ann was right –
must see.
While much
of the San Juan Valley is irrigated, this part near the dunes was not and it gives
you an idea of vastness of the area – reminds me of the African Savannah.
We rolled into
highly rated Dakota Ridge RV Park in Golden, Co around 6pm (yep, we hit Denver at rush hour), set up, and sat comatose until
bedtime. I didn't get any shots of the park as I was disappointed in how crowded together we were, but there were some real high dollar rigs sitting around.
Photos can
be enlarged by clicking on them.
Have a great
day and thanks for stopping by Almost Heaven South.
Larry
9/17/12
event date
I'm so glad you took the time to see those jaw dropping dunes. And LOL about the "sat comatose". I'm totally blaming that on rush hour.
ReplyDeleteIt's surely one big sand pile and I'm sure the traffic was a big contributor to my state.
ReplyDeleteI had never heard of those dunes. This calls for a new trip out west for us! Someday.
ReplyDeleteRobin Sue - I believe I'd use any excuse to go back to Southern CO.
ReplyDeleteLarry, Thanks for the views of the dunes! We ran out of time when we were in Colorado and we never got over to see them... Pretty nifty! Take Care, Big Daddy Dave
ReplyDeleteYay you made it to the Sand Dunes! Isn't it amazing to see the sand mountain against the real mountains? We love it there :) I agree, the San Luis Valley is very arid and much like the Savannah. Dry as heck!
ReplyDeleteI think that I got sand in my shoes just from looking at those pictures. I've only ever seen sand dunes on the eastern US beaches, VERY small compared to these large dunes. Those are huge.
ReplyDelete