“Some casual Sunday morning Paul Atreides role play.” That was my Strava caption for the 8 mile run with 1700 feet of vert I did all around these dunes. And that’s exactly what it felt like. This was an absolutely otherworldly experience. It also got me very sick for like 2 weeks afterwards – worth it.
I left Denver on a Saturday afternoon and took I25 south for a couple hours. The plan was to car camp on Lake Como Road, the approach road to the Blanca Massif, a group of the most iconic and challenging 14ers in Colorado. I arrived about 7pm, found a good spot and heated up my dinner on a camping stove. I was treated to some incredible night sky views. Although the temperature got into the teens that night, I was very warm and cozy wrapped up in my sleeping bag in the back of my car.
My alarm went off around 4am. I made breakfast and started the 30 minute drive or so to Great Sand Dunes. I arrived at the parking lot at first light, immediately located the highest dune I could see in the distance and took off running. I knew running on sand was difficult – and although I love to run on the beach, this was very different.
The temp was a cool 25 degrees with 30mph wind. The sand here in the park is very different from beach sand – its constantly shifting, blasted by wind and barely gets any moisture. It feels like trying to walk through weak snow. You sink in a little bit and slide with each step which means each it requires twice the energy output. Keep in mind, there is also no trail. The dunes shift several feet daily – you just have to pick a ridge line up to a point in the distance and make your way up. I made it to the top of High Dune for sunrise, which is about a 750 ft climb from the parking lot and around 8500 ft above sea level.
Next was Star Dune; which is (usually) the highest dune in the park and required roughly 800 more feet of climbing due to having to go up and down several other massive piles of sand to get there. This whole time the wind was blasting sand into my face, eyes, clothes, and everything I was carrying in my vest. Every step was a struggle, but I did not care at all. The landscape was truly like nothing I had ever seen – like nothing I never knew could exist. With every step I just kept looking around and saying “there’s no way this is real.“
Turns out, inhaling sand particles in sub-freezing temps for several hours is not good for your lungs or immune system. The next day, I woke up with a horrible feeling in my throat that turned into a cold, then turned into flu-like symptoms that lasted almost 3 weeks. Would I do it again? Without a doubt.
