Komierowski Photography

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Great Sand Dunes, Colorado, USA

National Park…the tallest sand dunes in North America…Set against a backdrop of Sangre de Cristo Mountains in Colorado. All Photos are COPYRIGHT and PROPERTY of Rafal K. Komierowski. May 2012

Most of the sand originated in the Sun Juan Mountains, over 65 miles (105 km ) to the west...while some larger grains originate in th enearby Sangre de Cristo Mountains

View of the Great Sand Dunes National Park from the distance over 10 miles (16 km ) from Alamosa Blanca Wildlife Habitat Area

In early years of Spanish explorers....Don Diego de Vargas (circa 1694) was the first European known to have entered San Luis Valley...

Then Capt. John Gunnison of the U.S. Topographical Engineers crossed part of the dunefield on horseback in 1853...

Settlers followed explorers into the San Luis Valley via trail from Santa Fe, New Mexico....

Imagine Gold Rush..gold and silver rushes around the Rockies after 1853 brought miners by the thousands into the state, stimulating mining businesses still operating today...

Some families established a ranches and homesteads along streams and creeks...However imagine hot summer temperatures!

By the 1920s the dunes had becomes a source of pride for local people and a potential source of tourist dollars for local businesses...as a photographer I am witness of that ...

This a black bear country! ...Also lightning can kill....get off dunes immediately if thunderstorms approach!

From a distance the dunes appear barren, but a short explorations shows how life adapts to fill every niche!

Medano and Sand creeks flow seasonally around the dune-field.

Water is the lifeblood of the Great Sand Dunes....please remember this area is above over 8500 (2600m) feet above sea level and sand gets hot 140F!

The dunes have long stood as a landmark for travelers, from ancient North Americans to Southern Ute, Jircarilla Apaches, Navajos, explorers, gold miners, homesteaders ...and myself!

Many asking why are they so tall? ...at least two factors are responsible: huge quantities of sand are caried downstream by Mednao Creek..

(why are they so tall?)...then redeposited by the southwesterly winds on the eastern edge of the dunefield, accounting for the very tall dunes in the Great Sand Dunes National Park.

All of the above factors (deposited sand by creek and winds) are responsible for the tallest dunes in North America.

The Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve offers some of the most stunning scenery in Colorado...

The Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve offers some of the most stunning scenery in Colorado

The Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve offers some of the most stunning scenery in Colorado

The Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve offers some of the most stunning scenery in Colorado

The Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve offers some of the most stunning scenery in Colorado

The Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve offers some of the most stunning scenery in Colorado

The Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve offers some of the most stunning scenery in Colorado