Sand Dunes National Park

Mosca, Colorado

Yesterday we decided the best time to go to the dunes would be early morning. This morning came and we all ate breakfast and got ready. Thanks to a slow departure (I kept running back in for ONE MORE THING we needed for the park), a couple of other minor hold ups, and the 40 minute drive, we didn’t go out on the dunes until 11am. This was a bit worrying to me because the sand gets really hot and I was imagining 80+ degree heat with no shade and 150 degree sand.

In reality the sand was hot but there was a constant strong wind blowing and the overall temperature was in the 70s. The sun was strong though and the elevation was 7900 ft, 1900 more than Denver. None of us seemed to get altitude sickness this trip. Melissa had a headache one day and Joey was a little under the weather today but it wasn’t clearly from the altitude and both were short-lived. We all wore sunscreen but a few of us still got a bit too much sun today.

Believe it or not, this desert has a seasonal stream that runs right next to it which is the result of snow melt from the mountains. It is actually part of the reason the dunes exist. The stream traps blowing sand which is later blown back up to the dunes. The stream is usually only present in spring but with all the snow this year it is still running. Mosquitos love the standing water they can find nearby so the first thing we noticed when we arrived was the insane number of mosquitoes! Luckily they were confined to the parking lot and the strong winds kept them away everywhere else.

Nole and Joe decided to climb High Dune which had an elevation of 8727 feet. It took them about 1.5 hours to climb it and 50 minutes to come back down. Here are some of Nole’s pictures:

The rest of us set up “base camp”. Melissa and I took turns sitting there with the little kids and watching the big kids “sand board”. We rented four sand boards for the kids. Two were sleds and two were stand up sand boards. The boards had to be waxed before each use. Asa, Joey and Cal really got into it but even Esme gave it a try.

Then I took the younger four to the creek where they played for a long time. We packed up camp and made our way towards the parking lot but the guys weren’t back yet. They finally returned, we braved the parking lot mosquitos again then went to the visitor center to do the Junior Ranger Program. This time, Melissa and I participated (adults can do it too!).

We got back to the campground and realized we were out of water in the camper. With 12 people using one 30 gallon tank (mostly dishwashing) it’s bound to run out. We dumped the tanks and got fresh water today but running out in 24 hours caused us to think more about boondocking together the next several days. Melissa and Joe took all the kids to the campground pool while Nole emptied the tanks and I looked around for a full hookup option for Moab (originally we planned to dry camp or boondock in Moab). We found a full hookup option that was reasonably priced and booked it.

Nole and I got to the pool ready for a refreshing swim. The pool was a very warm 90+ degrees. I loved it because I hate cold water. The kids were doing jumps off the diving board and some of us adults joined in too. Nova and Esme loved the little slide.

There were also hot tubs that were as hot as 111 degrees. The adults tried them and Mary and Cal got in for a short time too. It felt a little like being boiled alive. For reference, normal hot tub temp is 100-102 degrees.

We made chicken teriyaki for dinner for the group after swimming and later did some stargazing. I was falling asleep last night writing this post (like literally dropping the phone in the middle of writing a sentence!). I edited a bit (the next morning) because I figured there were some mistakes and omissions.

Miles today: 48

Melissa’s post: https://wp.me/peTbeK-IW