Wednesday, June 19, 2019, Royal Gorge, Great Sand Dunes National Park, Mosca, CO

After a couple of low energy days visiting a small science museum (Space Foundation Headquarters and Discovery Center) and taking in a geology talk at the Garden of the Gods, we were ready to get back to doing the tourist thing. There were a few big things remaining on our bucket list during our stay in the Colorado Springs area. 

Today we wanted to visit the last of Colorado's four National Parks. We saw Mesa Verde National Park several years ago and with our recent visits to Black Canyon of the Gunnison and Rocky Mountain National Parks, we only had Great Sand Dunes National Park to complete Colorado's collection. It would be a long drive but we had a route mapped that would allow us to make a quick stop at Royal Gorge Bridge on the way as well.

We had already decided we wouldn't spend a lot of time at Royal Gorge. Our summer romp through Colorado had been one dizzying heights adventure after another so we thought of this more as an interesting rest stop on our drive today. We arrived before the Visitor's Center opened so we just took a look around and snapped a few pictures.

Large rocks used in the landscaping drew my interest. I appreciated this large deposit of Mica (3 inches long, fanning out to an inch wide).

If we had waited another 90 minutes we could have walked across the bridge and taken a gondola ride over the abyss. The wait and the $28 per person ticket price told us we made the right decision to make this a short stopover and move along.   

The most I will pay to walk across a bridge is $4 maybe $5, so you see where the problem lies.

Fourth of July Rose Bush is the 1999 All-America Rose Selections (AARS) winner and the first climbing rose to receive this coveted award in over 23 years.

Beauty and the Beast

We were hoping to get a better view of the gorge (without paying the bucks) but did notice on the way out a hiking trailhead that might do the trick next time we visit the area.

We still had nearly 2.5 hours of driving to reach the Great Sand Dunes National Park. Fortunately, our route took us down some highways with beautiful scenery. From Royal Gorge, we headed west to Salida then south along highways 285 and 17. We followed the mountain range below for nearly 50 miles. The smooth pavement prompted most of the drivers to cruise along at more than 65 mph.

The backroads we traveled were nicer than most interstates.

Still nearly an hour away from the park we could see the tan dunes at the base of the mountains in the distance.

Approaching the park, we were struck by the strange mix of landscapes. The snow-capped mountains flanked by lush forest and the sand dunes below them were unlike anything we had seen. Dunes, reaching as high as 750 feet, are the tallest in North America.

This photo was taken from the road approaching the park.

This was our first glimpse of water that flows at the base of the dunes (and the hordes of people having a blast playing in the water.)

We parked in the picnic area and walked up a rise for a peek of what's to come before devouring our lunch.

This strange little plant (1-inch long red and white balloon) was everywhere on the rise. I have no idea what this could be (my Googling skills have failed me.)

Medano Creek flowed around the dunes and was an integral part of the mechanism that created the unique landscape. Thirty square miles of dunes were shaped and balanced by the forces of wind and water. Hundreds of parents and their kids were playing in the shallow water and having a blast. I pulled off my shoes and socks and waded in myself. Sam did not know what to think as I left him and Joani on the bank. 

Sam saw plenty of other canines romping in the water but he has never been a water dog preferring instead to keep his paws dry.

The flow is unusual. Instead of being steady, the water would surge with substantial waves breaking at random along the path of the creek.

The deepest water we encountered was no more than 6 inches (unless there was a surge that might have doubled that.)

I carried Sam into the middle of the creek and set him on the damp sand. He tasted the water and it brushed his paws. He got bolder and eventually he decided the water was not at all bad. Maybe he will become a water dog after all - we'll see how he reacts to the next body of water we visit.

Maybe he liked this water better than the ocean because he was allowed to drink it.

You can see the surges in the photo below. Upstream the sand will create a little dam and then enough water will cause the dam to break allowing a water surge that the kids could surf the push of water for many joyous yards in their tubes.

Sam was not crazy about the water surges but managed to still enjoy the water.

There was one short hike we wanted to try. It was the Dunes Overlook Trail. There were certainly some nice views from the trail but we never made it to the overlook.

I don't know if it was the 9,200-foot altitude, the occasional hot sand or his more than 13-year-old senior status but Sam decided he was not going any further. We carried him for a while but when we met some hikers returning from the overlook and they said we still had a half mile more to go, we gave it up.

The sand was not hot most of the time, but I noticed (I had on flipflops) every now and then it was very hot (difference due to moisture content, maybe).

We decided an approach from the east on Hwy 160 was doable in the coach. The dunes deserve a one or two week stay the next time we do Colorado.

I look forward to seeing a sunrise and a sunset over the dunes someday. But not today, we would not risk driving Hwy 160 through the mountains at dusk due to wildlife on the road.

Great Sand Dunes National Park was truly a fascinating place. We will look forward to a return visit when we have more time to explore this national treasure.