Dunes Among Diversity
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| Great Sand Dunes Entrance |
Our last planned destination on our Seven National Parks was the Great Sand Dunes, near Alalmosa, CO. We set out from Cortez on a chilly day mid September to make the approximately 200 mile, 3.5 hour trip east along 160. This route took us through Durango (I so wanted to stop but not an RV friendly town!), then on to Wolf Creek Pass, one of the most notable mountain passes in Colorado, winding through the San Juan Mountains to an elevation of 10,857 ft. The pass is described as being "significantly steep" on either side with a maximum grade of nearly 7%. I just looked at my map the entire time.
We landed at Cool Sunshine RV Park near the center of town, right by the railroad tracks.
We ventured out the Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge just east of Alamosa, and then to the Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge about 20 miles west of town. We spotted a few of our feathered friends, however the Sandhill Crane migration is typically in early February. These two areas would be amazing sights during migration! We ended our day visiting Spare Keg Breworks and San Luis Valley Brewing, basically right next to each other on Main Street.
The next day we set out to explore the Great Sand Dunes, about a 30 minute drive from Alamosa. When you first see the dunes, it seems unimpressive. Just a bunch of sand. But once you experience the massive scale of these dunes, and then learn about how they formed, it is clear why this is a National Park. In the photos below, see how the dunes are speckled? Those are people!
We were so happy my brother and sister-in-law and their dog Humphrey were able to joins us for our Alamosa visit. Humphrey loved the sand!
The next day we headed east, through another pass on 160, the La Veta Pass at 9,380 ft. Very beautiful, and not quite as treacherous as Wolf Creek Pass. We heard some strange crackling noises in the back of the truck and finally figured out it was our empty water bottles collapsing from the difference in pressure.
We wound our way across eastern Colorado, merging on to I70 in western Kansas, and landed in Hays, Kansas for the night. Most of the time we were on the edge of a fairly substantial storm. We enjoyed the rain from the comfort of the RV while we attempted to empty our fridge of any remaining food. My cheddar bratwurst salad was delightful.
We enjoyed our Seven National Parks adventure, clocking in 4491 miles in total, with 3692 of those towing the RV. Our road travel time was 66.5 hours. The least expensive gas was at home in Cold Spring, MN at $3.49, and the most expensive was $4.79 in Fort Morgan, CO. Ouch. On to the next adventure!
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