Scaling Southern Colorado’s Great Sand Dunes

Colorado seems forever identified with its Rockies: snow-capped peaks, alpine lakes, great skiing. Even the state’s new major-league baseball team is called the Rockies, as was the former National Hockey League franchise.

But there’s another Colorado--of wide prairies, long valleys, dry gulches and great sand dunes. This Colorado is south-central Colorado, where the San Luis Valley, the state’s largest alpine valley (indeed, one of the largest in the world), beckons the traveler.

Nature lovers will want to drift over to a remote corner of the San Luis Valley to visit the Great San Dunes, tallest dunes in North America.

Wind blowing across the valley has built the dunes to a height of nearly 700 feet. Hikers can trek to the top of the tallest dunes or simply wander anywhere across the 55 square miles of sand protected by Great Sand Dunes National Monument.

Thousands of years ago, the Rio Grande flowed through the San Luis Valley, much as it does today, carrying its sandy cargo of eroded bits of the San Juan Mountains. In time, the river changed course, leaving behind a sandy bed that over the centuries was blown northeast across the valley. The sand’s progress was stopped by the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The wind carried lighter particles over nearby passes but left heavier sand at the base of the peaks. Today, the winds continually resculpt and reshape the surface of the dunes, although the ecosystem itself is remarkably stable. Rain and snow from the atmosphere, coupled with ground-water seepage, keep the dunes’ moisture content constant. Ecologists worry that humans tapping San Luis Valley ground water could lower the water table enough to cause the dunes to dry up, destabilize and ultimately disappear.

In 1807, Capt. Zebulon Pike and a U.S. Army exploration party stumbled upon the dunes and the San Luis Valley. Hispanic and white settlers began arriving in the valley in the 1850s, but they more or less ignored the great sand dunes, adjudging them useless for wheat farming or cattle ranching.

At the urging of Colorado conservationists, President Hoover proclaimed the great dunes a national monument in 1932.

To reach the dunes, take U.S. 160 east out of Alamosa some 14 miles to Colorado 150. Turn north and drive 16 miles to the park entrance and visitor center.

The visitor center’s interpretive exhibits are excellent; don’t be put off by the shabby outward appearance of the center.

The turnoff to the dunes’ parking lot is another mile north of the visitor center on the left.

Doing the dunes means starting your hike by splashing across Medano Creek, usually ankle-deep in spring and early summer. Upstream, Medano Creek flows year-round. Downstream its flow is usually visible along the margin of the dunes in spring, but often disappears into the sands in summer or during long dry periods.

A trail of sorts parallels the creek and leads a mile or so to Pinyon Campground, but most visitors want to head directly for the promised sand. The tallest dunes are known as “star” dunes, with arms (ridges) like starfish radiating out from a single point.

If you want to head for their crest, follow a 1 1/2-mile, trail-less route southwest. Make your way up the slipping sand to the top of a star dune and admire the splendid view. To the north rises the snow-capped Crestone Range, complete with a couple of 14,000-footers scraping the sky. To the south, stretching as far as the eye can see, is the San Luis Valley.

You could spend a couple of fun days in and around San Luis Valley: hiking the dunes and nearby mountain nature trails, taking a walk along the Rio Grande, bird-watching at the Alamosa Wildlife Refuge, taking a ride on the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad through the majestic San Juan Mountains.

Funky, Spanish-flavored Alamosa, largest town in the San Luis Valley, is the gateway to the Great Sand Dunes. Alamosa is a curious combination of outdoor recreation center, sleepy agricultural hamlet and emerging artists’ colony.

A great place to stay in Alamosa is the six-room Cottonwood Inn (719-589-3882), a bed and breakfast furnished with turn-of-the-century antiques. Owner Julie Mordecai is an avid hiker and sends guests to the area’s best trails after a full and healthy breakfast. Rooms run $55-$75, double occupancy. Behind the inn is a path that leads along the Rio Grande through Alamosa.

If you want to rough it deluxe, near the national monument is Great Sand Dunes Country Club & Inn (719-378-2357), complete with 15 rustic rooms, a golf course and swimming pool. Even if the accommodations are a bit pricey for your budget (rates: $130 through June 30; $170, July 1-Sept. 26), drop by to visit the resident buffalo herd.

The bison, numerous in the San Luis Valley during the last century, have been reintroduced and are thriving. You can watch them from the club’s restaurant or observe them from a viewpoint, complete with interpretive exhibits, just up the road.

Take a hike with John McKinney’s “Day Hiker’s Guide to Southern California” ($16.95). Send check or money order to Los Angeles Times Syndicate, Dept. 1, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles 90053.

Great Sand Dunes / Colorado Where: Great Sand Dunes National Monument, 30 miles northeast of Alamosa, south-central Colorado. Distance: 1-3 miles or more round trip. Terrain: Sand dunes at base of Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Highlights: Tallest sand dunes in North America; undiscovered San Luis Valley. Degree of difficulty: Easy-moderate. Precautions: Surface of the dunes is very hot-wear shoes; dunes attract lightning, so avoid them in case of thunderstorms. For more information: Contact Great Dunes National Monument, 11999 Highway 150, Mosca, Colo. 81146, (719) 378-2312; San Luis Valley Tourism Council, P.O. Box 609, Monte Vista, Colo. 81144, (800) 835-7254.