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Sunday Great Sand Dunes Hike/Run

I finally made it over to the Great Sand Dunes on Saturday, after a few years of thinking I would visit but missing the cooler spring and fall windows. I also wanted to see Medano Creek with some water in it, so spring was ideal.

The light was very flat by mid-morning, so photos with any depth were a tough proposition, but at least one can see the size of the place by the ant-like humans slogging up the mountains of sand.


It was a total beach scene on Medano Creek, which is a seasonal stream flowing when there is enough melt water (and I suppose rain). It disappears into the sand and then the water pops up way out in the valley in the form of wetlands. The water was chilly, but only 2-3 inches deep. You had to cross it to get to the dunes.


I headed out on the pilgrimage to the to of High Dune, far left. I took a circuitous route starting towards the right of middle, and traversed over.

The texture was a mix of packed and loose sand. Most of the uphill was hiked, but once I got up on the ridges a little, I started running some.



The top of High Dune is below. What you can't see is the wind, which was pelting exposed skin with sand the entire time. It was bearable, but unpleasant:






The high points on the left half of the photo below are Challenger Point (left) and Kit Carson (center), which I visited last summer. You can barely see the sloped ramp on the front of Kit, slanting down to the right, which you descend on the way to the summit, attained by climbing the now snowy right side. It looks steeper from far away than it actually is, but it was still a rather demanding hike towards the end.


Distance was 3.94 miles, time 1:32 (moving 1:14), elevation gain/loss 605 feet, avg. pace 23:30 (moving 18:53).

I traveled from a few tenths of a mile out on the road, since the parking lot was full. This was a combination of steady hiking and running. I had to stop every so often and empty my shoes, because it felt like concrete was under my toes, and was heavy. The uphills are pretty tough, since you slide back half a stride each step, but as long as you keep a light step, the flats and downhills aren't too bad.

I didn't travel too far out into the dunes, partially because it would have been slow, hot going (especially uphill), but also because I figured it would be rather similar to what I had already seen.
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