Ever wanted to experience the desert, but didn’t want to ride a camel or drink cactus juice?
Would you believe that there is an amazing destination where you can traipse in the desert sand and splash in cool waters, all while being surrounded by snowcapped mountains?
Well, a vacation to the Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve in Colorado gives you just that—a place where the laws of nature seems to contradict itself!
A sand dune is a massive hill of sand formed over time by wind and the flow of water.
The sand dunes of Colorado are the tallest dunes in North America and “one of the most fragile and complex systems in the entire world,” according to USA Today.
Sand came down from the mountain streams and playa lakes of the San Luis Valley floor and southwestern winds carried miniature dunes towards a low curve in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, settling in one the best national parks in the United States.
Transformation of the dunes is always taking place as the sand shifts in this moving landscape, and with erosion constantly occurring, you know there will be fun to be had for years to come.
More than 300,000 people visit this sandy adult playground every year, being only 2.5 hours from Colorado Springs and just under 4 hours from Denver.
So, what does one do for fun in the desert? The answer is, more than you could possibly imagine!