We arrive at our 26th National Park on a cool cloudy day. A far cry different weather compared to our southern Treks!
Dunes Sunset
The rest of the story....
Chapter 26 – Great Sand Dunes
May 18th
In order to break up the long drive between Carlsbad and Great Sand Dunes, (close to 500 miles) we chose to drive about halfway and spend the night at a Hampster in Santa Fe, NM. We departed Santa Fe by 8 this morning heading north to our 26th National Park – the Great Sand Dunes. This Park is the newest of the 58 major National Parks and was established in 2004.
The further north we travel, the cooler the weather becomes. The skies are now filled with puffy white clouds rather than the sooty smoke filled skies of Texas and southern New Mexico. We’ve heard it’s raining and snowing in California. A storm front heading our way?
We’re heading north on Hwy 285 approaching the town of Espanola. Terry is on the cell talking to her girlfriend Colleen who used to live in this part of the country. Colleen warns us to keep a sharp eye out for the turnoff, as even when she lived here, there were many days when she would miss the turn. At exactly the same time Colleen is telling Terry about the tricky turnoff…I miss it!
Back on track! We continue north on 285 adjacent to the San Juan Mountains. This landscape is much more appealing to the eye! We stop off at the Safeway in the quaint town of Alamosa to reload with ice and supplies. We’re planning on another three nights in the Hob.
Earlier in the month, we thought we might be driving straight thru from Carlsbad all the way to Sand Dunes. If we did this, we would not have arrived until late afternoon or early evening. Finding a campsite late in the day can be dicey so I went online and booked us one of the “reserved sites”…just in case.
When we arrived at the Dunes, the wind is howling and we find plenty of available campsites. Rather than pitch the Hob in Site 45 (our reserved site) only to have to relocate the next day, we set up camp on Site #9…just across the street from the Shitter! It’s a somewhat private campsite…however, this particular week must be 6th Grade Camp for every kid in Colorado! The place is teaming with pre-teens!
After setting up camp, we check out the Visitor’s Center, buy our Commemorative Pins and books and check out the hiking scene. Tomorrow we shall hike the Dunes. Two possibilities. The ambitious hike is to Star Dune. It’s the tallest of the Dunes here in the Park and is listed as a strenuous three-mile one-way hike. The second option is to hike to High Dune – the second highest sand mound. It’s but a measly mile and a quarter one-way hike from the Parking Lot. I’ll leave it up to Terry to decide which route we take.
Back to camp. The weather is turning gray. The wind is really kicking up a fuss. The Hob looks like it may be blown from its moorings! We decide to cook an early dinner as the weather forecast for the evening looks threatening. We finish cleaning up our dishes as the rain begins to fall. It’s only 5 pm and we’ve taken refuge inside the Hob. Earlier, we bought a deck of cards at the Great Sand Dunes Lodge so we could while away the time playing a few games of Trump. The wind is screaming thru the trees, the rain violently pounding the Hob! Not much else to do but curl up in the sleeping bag, wait out the storm and get some sleep! I’m out cold by 6:30. Terry reads her Kindle until about 10pm. The rains have stopped…however, our next visitor is Mr. Cold Front.
All night long, we struggle to keep warm. Our REI sleeping bags aren’t rated for Colorado Cold! And it’s friggin’ freezing! Our Phoenician blood has long ago thinned out to reptilian standards. We’re both wearing our jeans, sweaters and jackets and still the cold penetrates. Our feet feel like they’re caught in the freezer. What a miserable night!
May 19th
The rain has dampened the Dunes but not our spirit of adventure! Finally…Hot coffee, bacon and hotcakes for breakfast! After having our fill of the most delicious of campsite meals, we load up our packs and head for the Dunes. The air is still and clouds conceal the nearby mountains. We notice it had snowed last night at an elevation not much higher than where we’re at…which is about 8200’. The heck with the weather…today we hike!
The Dunes
We are camped amongst the pines and junipers at the base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and just west of us lies an impressive sand deposit covering over 300 square miles. Where the heck did this huge sand box come from?
Most of the sand came from the San Juan Mountains…65 miles further west! As the San Juan’s eroded, the now infamous wind picked up the smaller grains of sand and bounced them along the prairie until they settled at the base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Here they gathered and grew over a many thousands of years. Estimates of how long it took for the Dunes to take shape range from 12,000 years to over a million. As fierce as the winds can be in this area…I’m going with the 12,000-year estimate!
Larger grains of sand came down from the de Cristos via the Medano Creek and other streambeds to help build up the dunes from the north and the east. There are reasons these dunes are the tallest in the U.S. First of all, huge quantities of sand are carried downstream by Medano Creek. The southwesterly winds redeposit the sand along the eastern edge of the dunefield, which account for the very tall dunes in that area. Then, the less common but stronger winds from the northeast blast thru the mountain passes and pile the dunes back upon themselves, producing the tall and strikingly crisp ridges.
This is an intriguing landscape. Huge sand dunes in the foreground shadowed by tall, forested mountains. From a distance, the dunes look puny compared to the mountains. Then you attempt to scale these sandy mounds and quickly discover how large they really are. These are the highest sand dunes in America!
As we begin our trek up to High Dune, there are only two other people ahead of us – a father and his 12-year old son. From a distance, it appears to us that they walk about a hundred yards. Then stop to rest. Walk another hundred yards. Stop. Walk. Stop…We soon find out why!
Although this is to be one of the shortest treks we’ve made during our tour of the National Parks, hiking the Dunes could easily be rated as the most difficult! The summit of High Dune is a mere mile and a quarter from the parking lot and only a 650-foot elevation gain. Yet every step you take is a struggle. On the steep sections of the climb it was one step up…half a step sliding back. Another step up…three quarters of a step back as we wade thru the soft, ankle deep sand. Mix in 8200’ of altitude and you’ve got on helluva cardio workout!
That troupe of 6th grade Campers started their Dunes hike about a half hour behind us…however, their young legs are gaining on us. I could see at least 40 of these small “ants” working their way up the crest of the Dunes in hot pursuit of the summit of High Dune. The competitor in me wanted to reach the peak before these imps. But both the bride and I were short of breath and struggling up the steep slope leading up to the summit. Alas, but a hundred feet short of the pinnacle we found ourselves walking in the footsteps of youth.
As we approach the summit of High Dune, the winds have begun to pick up steam and blow fiercely across the shifting sands. The Dunes are dancing wildly and shape shifting as we struggle up the remaining few paces. Terry equated it to having a sand facial…strong enough to remove the skin from your face! Good thing I chose NOT to wear my contacts this morning!
Just as we summit, my camera runs out of batteries and I dare not attempt to change it as the camera would instantly fill with sand. Heading back down the Dunes is a treat. Our boots filled with sand, we slide back down to base camp!
After lunch, we return to the base of the Dunes to follow Medano Creek northward. Even though it had rained last evening, the Creek is barely flowing. As we head north along the perimeter, we discover the Creek’s termination point. The stream literally disappears into the sand. The winds have died down a bit making our noontime trek more pleasurable.
Mosca Pass Trail
One last trek for the day, we head out for the mountains to hike the Mosca Pass Trail around 4pm. We have the Trail to ourselves. It seems the Dunes are the main event; however, this trail is delightful! No 6th Graders here! We walk amongst tall stands of Aspen, Piñon pine, narrow leaf Cottonwoods and Douglas Fir. The Trail follows Mosca Creek up a lovely canyon and the refreshing sound of moving water serenades us as we hike up the path.
To the southwest, the skies are turning gray and ominous…and appear to be heading our way. I suggest we head back down. Terry has no problem with this proposal as our aged legs have already had quite a workout. We meet a lone Ranger upon our descent. He snaps our picture. We ask him why nobody is hiking this lovely trail. “The Dunes are the feature attraction,” he answers, smiling as he heads up the Trail delighted by the solitude it offers.
As we head back to camp the skies continue to darken and the temperature drops. We strike up the first campfire of this Trek as snow begins to softly fall! Snow! We’ve gone from the 100º temperature in Texas to snow! The sun peaks thru the clouds and offers up a magnificent view of the Dunes. I grab the Canon and snap off a few pictures. Then, it begins to hail! Snow and hail are much more camp friendly than the previous evening’s rain showers so Terry and I sit by the fire and enjoy this most unusual weather!
May 20th
Holy Crap! We froze our butts (and feet) off again last night! I’m up at 5:15am walking around the Campground to try to get the blood circulating once again. It’s friggin’ cold and I burned all the firewood last night. When Terry wakes, she jumps in the car and cranks up the engine to generate heat! I join her and we head on down to Alamosa in search of a HOT cup of coffee. Too cold for us thin blooded Phoenician wimps to attempt brewing coffee at camp this morning so we opt to drive the 38 miles into town in search of a cup of Joe.
At 7:15, we spot Milagros Coffee House on the corner of State and Main in Alamosa. Purrrfect! As we enter Milagros, I notice 5 gents sitting by the front window all of which are dressed out in kilts. The male Barista behind the counter is dressed like Carman Miranda complete with fruit bouquet on top of his wig. What kind of place is this? My initial though…faggalits! A gay coffee house…in Alamosa, CO?
Terry point out the sign on the counter declaring “Costume Week at Milagros” and any patron brave enough to come in dressed up will be treated with free coffee for the week. I begin to feel better about the joint and notice the Breakfast Special is two Hotcakes, two eggs and two pieces of bacon or sausage. I order it up. Carman tells me that breakfast won’t be served until 8:00 as the cook doesn’t get in until then.
What? The cook doesn’t show up to work at a coffee house that serves breakfast until 8? Unheard of! How dare they…. We get our coffees to go and head out in search of breakfast…and some Visine to ease the pain in my left eye. Although I did not wear my contacts yesterday, a large grain of blowing sand did happen to take up residency in my left eye and during the night, made a rather nasty impression upon the inside of my eyelid.
Nothing else in town strikes our fancy so we head back to Milagros. The cook has showed up and decided that rather than Hotcakes, he’d offer a French Toast Special instead. As we sat enjoying the warmth of the restaurant and our breakfast, we learned much about Milagros. The reason the chef didn’t come in until 8 was because he is a volunteer. As it turns out, many of the folks working here are volunteers and all of the profits from Milagros go toward helping to support La Puenta.
La Puente is a non-profit organization in Colorado's San Luis Valley providing emergency shelter, food assistance, transitional housing, self-sufficiency services, homeless prevention, community outreach services, and job training for the homeless and other community members in crisis.
Milagros (translation: miracles) was originally scheduled to open in March of 1998. However, public health code required the restaurant be equipped with commercial appliances. To comply, the La Puenta group needed to immediately raise $10,000 in order to purchase the necessary equipment. Declaring this impossible, the Milagros project was abandoned.
On Valentine’s Day, 1998 the TV was turned on at the La Puenta Shelter. That night, the Colorado Lottery was conducting its annual drawing for non-profit organizations. Much to the surprise of all volunteers and guests, La Puenta Home was drawn! A local community member had been submitting his “losing” lottery tickets for the nonprofit draw. With his winning ticket, La Puenta was awarded exactly $10,000! The coffee shop soon opened and was named Milagros as its origin was a genuine miracle!
Here I am reading the Milagro story. This grumpy old fart from Phoenix, bitching about the cold and the need for coffee and food. Trying to understand why the heck the cook didn’t start until 8 o’clock. And all along, this incredible place is there simply to help others. Good Grief! I felt like a lousy lump of coal. If ever you find yourself passing thru Alamosa, CO…please do stop by Milagros. Good stuff and great purpose!
After breakfast, Terry and I decided we’d had enough of the frigid cold evenings. She called the Strater Hotel in Durango to see if we could check in a day early. Squeals of delight were heard throughout the San Juan Valley when we were told our room would be ready for us when we arrived later that day! Soon thereafter, we’re back at the Dunes to break camp and head west to warmer climes!
The drive west on Hwy 160 from Alamosa to Durango is very pleasant. Most of the trip is made at an elevation of 7000 feet or more. By the time we reached the Wolf Creek Pass, elevation 10, 850, it had begun to snow once again. At the summit, you cross the Continental Divide and it’s all downhill from there to Durango!
Until we meet again, amigos! Happy Trails!
No comments:
Post a Comment