After we left Rocky Mountain National Park, we headed to Great Sand Dunes National Park to check it out. I will say of all the Colorado parks we hit, this was probably at the bottom of my list. Don’t misunderstand, I am glad we went, and it was massive. I hear that certain times of the year there is water that runs through it and that would have been super cool to have seen and been able to play in but alas, we missed that window and just had “melt your feet off” hot sand.
In fairness, we didn’t hit even a big portion of the park. We didn’t have an off road vehicle and so we had to stick to the safe and trusty paved roads. The Great Sand Dunes park is so much more than just the dunes from what I understand now and if we ever head back that way, I will plan on taking something a little more “adventure” friendly than my van. So, future tips for me and anyone else planning on attending….plan for a time before the water drys up, and plan to take some dirt roads!
While we were there, my family came across a few holes that had been dug where the river had come through not long ago. The bottoms of these holes had puddles of water that everyone seemed happy to dip their feet in after walking down the dunes back toward their cars. One more tip, wear shoes. Lots of people had flip flop but mad that sand was hot and people were dancing and running to find shade or cooler sand.
Another thing we saw tons of, and would have been fun to have had, is sand boards. I looked into them briefly but the thing is ( and the are missing a huge money maker imo), they don’t rent the boards at the park. They are available in a few places outside of the park but nothing super close, we are talking like 30 to 60 mins away. I wish they had rented them at the visitors center but since they didn’t, and we didn’t know the area well. we passed on that chance. However, there were so many people who had them, I guess their system works just fine.
After we finished playing in the sand, we headed down the road to a short waterfall hike. The turn off from the park wasn’t far, maybe 5 miles. However, the road to the falls was terrible! I mean one of the bumpiest dirt rads we have been on and we have been on a lot of dirt roads. There were several times I almost had my driver, aka husband, turn around. This is a very well traveled road and many people were coming and going but it was rough to but it mildly. We did eventually make it t the trail head along with everyone else in that part of Colorado. The hike is .5 miles and would be easy for an avid hiker. Personally, I struggled. It was really hot and it seemed up hill the entire way. We did find a bench or two along the way and that helped. ( I am the worst baby about inclines so I’m probably being a but dramatic).
Once we made it to the water, it was time for shoes and socks to get wet or to come off. Mine opted to ditch them. The rocks were slippery and the water was cold but it was the easiest part of the hike. we walked a short while ( maybe a small block if that) over boulders and rocks in a very shallow stream to the base of the falls. It was very pretty but still so many people you had to sort of wait in line to see it or to get a picture. I waited patiently, finally it was my turn but i felt rushed and didn’t have the right lens for how tight the space was. I grabbed this shot but mostly just hurried to move out of the crowds way.
On the way home we went on another adventure since my gps wanted to take us back through the crazy private dirt road it brought us in on, on that route we found the cutest baby antelope which sort of was the best part of the day.
Over all, like I said, I am glad we made it there. I probably wont head back but if I do, it will not be in the middle of summer. One more National Park checked off the list though!
