Great Sand Dunes National Park

Continuing our journey with the girls, we stopped in Alamosa for more groceries. Thankfully Walmarts are laid out similarly so we can quickly locate the items we need.

We traveled the short distance to Great Sand Dunes National Park. We went straight to the visitor center for our second Junior Ranger Booklet, stamps and stickers. From there we continued a mile further into the park to the Piñon Flats Campground. We were a bit anxious as all of the campers were either in camper vans or tents. Many of the sites were too small for us, but Tom had done his research. We fit perfectly.

Without electricity, it was quite hot at first. We opened the windows for ventilation. Lillian’s biggest concern was that we wouldn’t have A/C. But the anticipation of sand sledding allowed her to forget about electricity.

We drove just outside of the park to the small Oasis Village to rent sand sleds for the evening. With the sled in the back of the truck, we returned to the campground where we cooked a quick dinner. Then it was off to the sand dunes.

In shorts, sweatshirts and closed-toed shoes, the girls took off across the dry sandy river bed. Midway to the first dune, the wind really picked up and started stinging the back of our legs.

We made it to the first small dune for a little sledding. It is not as easy as it looks. Lillian was so excited but only slid a couple of feet. But she tried and tried again. The board just dug in. Then it was Emery’s turn. She was a bit more hesitant and needed a little more encouragement. She let me give her a push but the same thing happened to her. I gave it a go and didn’t do much better.

As the sun was falling behind the dunes, we began our trek back to the truck. The blowing sand continued to pelt us as we walked back across the river bed. The girls really struggled with the sand needling their legs and face. Each of us poured a fair amount of sand out of our shoes. I knew we would be quite sandy, so I used a trim paint brush (I packed for this purpose) to dust off the dry sand. It worked pretty well. I was able to get them into the shower with only the sand in their hair.

I predict they will remember the blowing sand more than the actual sledding. Emery is intent on coming back when she is a little older to make it all the way to the top.

After showering, we acclimated our eyes and stepped outside for some spectacular stargazing. We observed the Big Dipper, the North Star, Jupiter and the Milky Way stretched across the dark sky. Thousands of stars appeared before our eyes, but the fear of bears (and exhaustion) took over. We put the girls to bed.