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	The Great Sand Dunes National Park The Great Sand Dunes of Colorado are seeming totally out of place at the edge of the snow-covered Rocky Mountains, these dunes of pure golden sand cover an area about 7 by 5 miles and reach heights of 700 feet above the floor of the flat San Luis Valley, making them the tallest dunes in the USA. Great Sand Dunes National Monument became Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve on September 13, 2004, when Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton signed a declaration making this America's 58th National Park. Visitors can hike the dunes and several nature trails, observe plants and animals and camp at either a campground near the dunes or in the backcountry. Medano Creek, which flows at the base of the dunes during spring and early summer, allows for sand castle building, fishing and hiking. The dunes are the product of the wind and rain eroding the San Juan and Sangre de Cristo Mountains that ring the San Luis Valley. They have collected here because the prevailing winds across the valley blow in this direction and meet winds blowing in the opposite direction. The sand drops to the valley floor and is held in place by water flowing from the Sangre de Cristo's. So over the course of millenia, the dunes have built up to where they are today. And tomorrow they will be different because the wind still blows, the sand still moves and the deposits of sand still grow. The Great Sand Dunes National Park photo gallery

	My Own Great Sand Dunes Travels This was another marathon trip I took. But this time I had my wife with me. We drove straight there all night after work from Dallas Texas. We arrived there at 7 am just in time to try and find a camping sight. The place was booked solid but we followed the park ranger around as he checked camp sites and located a site where the people were going to leave. So we staked our claim and came back later to pitch our gear.
	My morning shooting was out of the question since by this time I had missed my perfect light. So we ate and rested until the afternoon light. About 3pm we started hiking looking for areas to photograph for the late evening. Eventually we drove just outside of the park entrance and I saw where I needed to go. I pulled off to the side of the road and walked 3 miles across the field until I came upon the base of the south side of the dunes. I stayed here and photographed until the sun was gone and walked back.. Woke up the next morning at 5:30am to catch the morning rays hitting the dunes and photographed until 9am. Then we tore down the campsite and drove straight back to Dallas another 16 hours. The effort paid off. Truly an incredible area and we will go back again someday.
The Great Sand Dunes National Park photo gallery