Great Sand Dunes National Park

After our fun overnight soak visit to the Sand Dunes Swimming Pool, we took the short drive to the Great Sand Dunes National Park with a plan to hike up to High Dune.

Karen crossing seasonal Medano Creek.

Greg pointing to our hiking goal: High Dune.

Monkey!

A view from High Dune.

Greg and Karen on High Dune.

Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve is a very special place.  The time to visit is in the spring when the seasonal Medano Creek is flowing with snow melt.

The experience here is much like a visit to the ocean.  There is a lot of sand and what feels like a beach sans the seaweed.  We wore flip flops for this hike. We are still getting sand out of our clothing.

The water flows in a way that's hard to describe, as little sand dams built and bust with the water flowing differently every few minutes.

Water ripples 

Once you cross the creek, you are faced with huge mounds of sand.  It's not easy to hike on and it can get really super hot!  At certain points on the hike we were both yelling at each other that our feet were burning.

This hike is likely unbearably hot during summer months - we hope to never find out!

It is a real slog up to High Dune.

High Dune is not the highest dune in the park, but it is the highest one that is near the parking area and creek.  The view from the top feels high enough.  You have outstanding views of the impressive snow capped Sangre de Cristo Mountains as well as nearly the entire San Luis Valley.  It's really quite spectacular from up there.

We almost didn't make it all the way up to High Dune.  At one point we were both really hot and the sand was particularly hard to walk through.  That's when we discovered a ridge that was hard packed. We followed that ridge up in a roundabout path, eventually to the top.  Other people took the more direct route we had been on previously.  They couldn't understand how we beat them to the top.

The hike up rises about 700 feet but the sand makes it feels like much more. The elevation at the top of High Dune is about 8700 feet.  It's not really a far hike, only about three miles round trip, but a lot of it is two-steps-up, one-slide-back. It feels much further.

Heading back down is the most fun of all.  You can run down the dune slopes, and some people did, including us.

It's really fun to fly down a steep slope of dune.  We saw people on snowboards sliding down. If you bring cardboard up you can slide well on that.

Running down gives you that same thrill as skiing down an impossibly steep slope. It's a thrill you don't want to miss.

The park even provides a sand enabled wheel chair with bulbous tires for those who need assistance getting out onto the dunes.

We had a fantastic day hiking the dunes and we highly recommend a spring visit here.

There is a nice park campground that is closed in the winter.  It opens at the very end of March. There are no hookups and it could be a problem for larger RVs to fit.  (The website says there are a few 35 foot spots.)  There are larger RV sites nearby, outside the park, including the nice ones we stayed at the night before, at Sand Dunes Swimming Pool.

We met a lot of people who were in the area for the annual Monte Vista Crane Festival that is held nearby.

The park is also known for it's 4x4 road that snakes past the dunes and up and over a nearby mountain pass. We plan to give that road a go, in a few years, once we get another Jeep.

Back down at the van, we shook out the sand as best we could, which wasn't easy.

On the drive back to Los Alamos, we stopped in Taos at our favorite restaurant: Out Back Pizza. Unfortunately, Out Back was out of gluten free crust, so instead of great pizza, we enjoyed their fantastic salad with it's out-of-this-world pesto dressing.

Below is a photo sphere. You can use your cursor to move around the view of High Dune.

Views: High Dune - Great Sand Dunes NP by Greg Kendall

Below is a photo sphere.  You can use your cursor to move around the view of Medano Creek.

Views: Medano Creek - Great Sand Dunes NP by Greg Kendall

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Click HERE for more information on the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, Colorado.

Sand Dunes Swimming Pool (and RV Park)

We read about a large pool of geothermally heated water near the Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve in Colorado.  It sounded intriguing.  The pool was very large and had a grill that was said to serve award winning food.  We decided we had to check out the pool, the food and the RV park.

We were not disappointed!  (With the exception of one aspect of the place ... that may be remedied in the near future.)

The big pool is about 100 degrees with silky feeling water.

The grill food was quite tasty.

The RV Park is what you would expect.

We were impressed with the place. The employees were very friendly, the food was really good and the water felt fantastic.  (The water is super soft and silky.)

The one downside for us: It's an exceptionally family friendly place with lots and lots of young and older kids splashing and jumping about. If you're going for a "zen" type experience, you could be seriously disappointed.

The good news: We were told by management that they are nearing completion of converting an existing large greenhouse into an adults-only pools area.  We are intrigued by this and plan to return to check out the new area when it opens in a few months.

Despite all the kids splashing around, we had a great time soaking, swimming and chowing down. There is a very hot jacuzzi tub (that we didn't try) that is for adults that is right next to the cafe (and all the activity there.) It's reported to be 107 degrees - HOT.

The grill previously used the greenhouse area to grow produce for the grill and to distribute to stores, but they decided to convert it.  We were told there would be many small pools in the greenhouse along with a long lap type pool.

I asked if it would be OK  to peak inside the greenhouse, but was denied because the construction crew wasn't there on the weekends. The manager said that they were hoping to open the new area by the end of April, but he was hedging his bets by telling me not to hold him to that time frame.  I figure that by at least June it should be up and running.

My favorite hot springs typically involve being able to soak late into the night while watching the stars, hoping to see a shooting star. It appeared the greenhouses are completely covered, so night sky viewing while soaking could be out in this new section.

The Sand Dunes Swimming Pool has a closing time of 10 PM.  (8 PM from December to February. The pool is closed for cleaning on Thursdays.)

I like the rules at Orvis Hot Springs and Valley View. If you are an overnight guest at these two springs, you can soak all night if you please. It would be great if the Sand Dunes pool could allow that, or at least provide some extended time exclusively for overnight guests.

I am imagining that if all the frenetic family and kids activity were done at ten, it would be a great experience to be in a big quiet pool.  It would also help if they turned down some of the blaring flood lights so you could actually see the night sky from the big pool.

Even with these issues, it was a fun experience and I will go back to enjoy the pool again. If you want to swim and soak without all the splashing and noise, the best time appears to be in the mornings at opening. (weekdays might be quieter.) The first hour or so is devoted to lap swimming and it was pretty mellow when we were there early. By 11 am, things began hopping again.

The RV park is your standard type with water and electric hookups (there is a dump station on-site). There are nine big side-by-side pull-through spots.  It's dirt and there are some scrawny looking trees. There is a heated laundry area with two bathrooms that have nice pay showers that take quarters. (There are showers in the pool area too, that are included with the pool fee.)

The cost for an RV water and electric site is $30.  This includes 50% off the pool entry fee.  (The normal pool fee is $12/adult.)

It was funny to me that even the toilets in the laundry area use the hot spring waters.  My behind was sweating profusely from the heat emanating from the bowl. That was a different experience!  My tush felt steam-cleaned!

In addition to the RV hookups area, there is a $20 dry camping section further out.  Closer to the pools is a tent camping area.  Near to the dry camping area are three really small cabin type buildings with beds that can be rented if you don't have an RV or tent.  In between all these are some shallow ponds with lots of fish in them.  The location use to be a fish farm, but I got the idea that the fish are now for the personal consumption of the owners. (Or maybe for the nearby Alligator experience?)

The wildlife area with the greenhouse in the background (future adult soak area).

Across the street from the pool property is a neat wildlife area.  There is a sign saying that it's state land and to keep out, but the pool manager told us that it's a great place to walk around and we did. Our walk was great. There were ducks in ponds and a dirt road that went around the ponds. Along the way there was a dirt air-strip that we walked down. A sunset walk in this area is fantastic. The view of the snow capped mountains to the east is inspiring!  You can make out the sand dunes from here.

Stunning snow capped mountain view

The place is pet friendly and allows dogs on the big pool grounds.

All-in-all it's a pretty neat place, especially if you have kids. It's well run, tasty, clean and fun.  You can see the mountain views from the pool area.

Up Next: After a really good breakfast (breakfast burritos) at the grill, we packed up and headed over to the Great Sand Dunes National Park for a fantastic climb up a high dune.

Browse the photo sphere below by moving it around with your cursor.  There are pointers you can click through to see photo spheres of the grill area and the RV camping area too. This was taken in the morning when the big pool was not very noisy or crowded.

Views: Saguache County, CO by Greg Kendall

Update (6/2015):
We have been back and have enjoyed the new adult greenhouse pools twice.  We really like them. There is a full bar, a long warm pool, two hot pools and one exceptionally hot pool.  There is also a small sauna.  The long warm pool is really relaxing and you can find your own depth to sit at. You can enjoy your food at the tables near the bar area. There is an extra fee to enter this area above the regular entry fee.  You get a half price discount if your are staying in the RV park or cabins.

The new Greenhouse Pools...
Click and hold below to move around the 360 degree Google Photosphere image below.



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For more information on the Sand Dunes Swimming Pool (and RV/camping there) click HERE.

For a more "zen" like hot spring experience, you can try Joyful Journey Hot Springs, which is another 30 minutes or so north of here. And for a naturalist hot spring experience in an beautiful woody mountain side location you can head north a ways to the Orient Land Trust - Valley View Hot Springs.  Joyful Journey has RV hookups.  Orient Land Trust is more rustic and has three RV spots with 30 amps of standard plugin power. Orient produces their own electricity from a stream fed water wheel generator, but there typically is not a lot of excess electricity so you are asked to conserve as much as possible to prevent brown-outs.

Earthships Ahoy Matey!

In March 2015, we headed north for a trip to the Sand Dunes Swimming Pool and RV Park and to see the Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve in Colorado in order to climb a sand dune.

On the way north, we stopped at the Earthship Visitors Center near Taos, New Mexico where you can learn about the construction of Earthship Biotecture.

We arrived at the visitors center just in time to join a tour of a new research Earthship that is under construction. We have always been curious about these odd buildings just outside of Taos. They are unique constructions that have always seemed very mysterious.  The visitors center provides a self-guided tour for $7, but we were lucky to be able to tag along with a class of students taking a guided tour.

Greg in an Earthship greenhouse. They were growing
bananas and pineapples. So cool!

An Earthship out-building under construction

Recycled tires, cans and bottles used as insulating wall material

Inside a research Earthship under construction

Rain and melted snow is funneled from the metal roof into
underground cisterns that store a years worth of water (or more).

Student experimental Earthship living quarters

More Earthships under construction

Earthship with wind generator that doubles as art

Using recycled material that is later covered

Karen below a colorful wall making use
of recycled bottles to create a stained glass feel

The idea behind these "radically sustainable" homes is to be as self-sufficient as possible, while using recycled materials in the construction.  They are typically very linear homes that maximize the southern sun exposure in order to trap heat for the home in a front glassed-off greenhouse that provides space to grow vegetables and fruits for consumption by the home residents. Gray water is circulated through this growing area in order to filter it for other uses, such as in toilets.

If your goal is to live an alternate, sustainable, yet comfortable lifestyle, these homes are made for you! They are also very popular with Hollywood celebrity types, who are trying to out "green" each other.

The homes are powered by solar panels and wind turbines.  The homes store power made during the day in large batteries for use at night.  Water is collected from roof runoff into large underground cisterns. The water goes through a series of filters that make it potable.

The objective of these homes is to provide everything a family needs to survived the harsh Northern New Mexico environment: Winter heating, summer cooling, year round food, clean water in a land with little rainfall, electrical power.  There are no utilities connected to these homes.  (Heck, they barely have what you would call "roads" out there!)

The homes are constructed using recycled glass bottles, old tires, cans and other materials along with cement, stucco and dirt.  The homes are able to retain heat in the winter and stay pretty cool in the summer because they are partially covered by a mound of dirt rising over them on the north side of the buildings.

There is an architect "guru" who leads this Earthship Biotecture community. His name is Mike Reynolds. Clearly, Reynolds is well respected by his students and "disciples." Mike has been at this project since the late 60's, refining his techniques, systems and material all along they way. Reynolds' organization will build you one of their patented Earthships, but it won't come cheap here! They can cost from $300,000 to $500,000. His team of students and assistants travel all around the globe building their uniquely sustainable homes especially in regions devastated by natural disasters.

(You can build them much cheaper if you are willing to forgo the idea that you can get a mortgage or sell it to someone else if you move.  What you are buying from Reynolds is his accumulated knowledge and legally accepted home designs that can pass many city planing and zoning inspections.)

One thing that surprised us is that they don't use composting toilets in Earthships.  We plan to put one in our future C Class RV. It seems only natural that you would want to make use of every resource that is "generated" by the residents of these homes!

It's well worth a stop to take the tour if you are in the Taos area just west of the Rio Grand Gorge Bridge. For a Google Map to the visitors center click HERE.  To learn more about Earthship Biotecture click HERE. A film was made about Reynolds' life's work, including the loss and then regaining of his architectural licence and his fight to get laws changed.  It's called Garbage Warrior and is available on YouTube at this time. Despite his difficult struggles he is now highly respected in Architectural and sustainable community circles.  HERE are some more videos about Reynolds and his Earthships.

Absolutely delicious Tex-Mex Chicken Salad
at the East West Grill in Alamosa, CO.

On our way up to the Sand Dunes Swimming Pool, we stopped in Alamosa, Colorado for lunch at the East West Grill.  The Grill has some exceptionally tasty dishes. It's a great dining stop.  We like to eat here when we can.  For more information on this gem of a restaurant, click HERE. They making something to please everyone with a surprisingly huge variety of menu options at reasonable prices.

If instead you're hankering for a big ol' steak, then mosey on over to the True Grits Steakhouse in Alamosa for complete satisfaction with a "John Wayne" theme. It's not super fancy, but provides a nice "rancher's night out" ambiance.

Coming Up: Sand Dunes Swimming Pool (and RV Park). It's a nice, family oriented hot spring pool place near the Great Sand Dunes National Park.

Vegas Warhammer and a Snowy Grand Canyon

I flew from Albuquerque to Las Vegas to meet Greg. He drove our NV camper van from Los Alamos, NM to Vegas. See prior four posts for details of his adventure! 

We were in Las Vegas (Nevada not New Mexico) to spend a weekend with family. Our nephew Ben, who lives in Utah, was there competing in a Warhammer Tournament at the Flamingo and my cousin's daughter Eliana, who lives in Northern California was competing in the JAMZ National Cheer and Dance Tournament at the Orleans. 

When Greg and I first started dating in high school (I know - what a cliche), he was in the chess club and played a new game called Dungeons and Dragons. D&D was one of the first, fantasy, role-playing, strategy games. Our nephews love Warhammer which is a science-fantasy strategy game with physical miniature characters (think models) that you paint. The book in the lower right corner of the first picture contains the rules and powers of each character. The early version of D&D was played with grid paper and dice. The dungeon master would design a dungeon and characters built up their powers and money over time to make it to different levels of the dungeon. It was awesome to see a whole, huge room full of people playing a strategy game with no computers!

Ben  (brown shirt) came in 5th place overall in the Warhammer Tournament
Very exciting for his first tournament. 

We were surprised how big a turnout for strategy gaming\

Meanwhile - Eliana was in Vegas with her mom Berenice for a cheerleading and dancing competition. Greg, my sister Merrily, her middle son Joe and I all met up with Berenice and Eliana for a wonderful inexpensive breakfast at our favorite place in Vegas - La Salsa!
My cousin Jesse (Eliana's dad) is a wonderful artist. He has a painting displayed at Kid Robot in the Cosmopolitan. So we took a walk over there to see it again and take a group photo. Here is a link to Jesse's website to see more of his artwork, murals and collectible, highly sought after art toys.

Me, Berenice, Eliana, Joe,
Merrily and Greg at Kid Robot
Ben was back at the Warhammer Tournament

Greg heard about a new show at the Wynn's called Show Stoppers. Merrily, Greg and I went to see it on Saturday night. We got our tickets online very early and were shocked when we went to our seats and were literally in the first row, front and center. It was almost too close. Awesome seats and fantastic show especially if you love Broadway! Loved it.

During the middle of the show a dancer came down the steps off the stage and messed up the hair of the guy next to us. Greg was glad it wasn't him.

Happy Chinese New Year at the Wynn

This was a fast trip for me. I flew into Vegas on Friday. Greg and I left Vegas in our camper on Sunday morning (Feb. 22). Our original plan was to drive to the Grand Canyon, spend one night and then leisurely drive back to Los Alamos on Monday. Saturday night we heard that a snow storm was possible on Sunday at the Grand Canyon and Flagstaff. 

Thus started our big debate. Do we go for it and stick to our Grand Canyon plan or go south and head back via Tucson or Phoenix? We hemmed and hawed and finally decided to go for it. I haven't been to the Grand Canyon since I was a teenager. I told my boss before I left that if the weather turned on us - I might not be back until Wednesday. I must be psychic.  

Storm clouds in the distance on the turnoff to the Grand Canyon

When we first arrived at the Trailer Village RV Park near the rim, it was a mix of rain and snow. We went for a walk to the canyon's edge and saw a white bank of thick clouds and not much else. I have to say I was disappointed, but hopeful the next day would be clearer.

We made dinner in the camper and settled in enjoying the sound of the rain and snow on our roof. Trailer Village has hookups, so we survived the chilly 16 degree night using our electric blanket and Mr. Buddy Heater. (We paid $39 per night for an electric hookup.)

The office had a sign warning campers to unhook their water and sewer because of the overnight freezing temps.  We did have a small problem with the Mr. Buddy heater shutting off even though we had the window slightly open. When we got back home we read, that if the heat keeps shutting off, you should open a door to let more oxygen into the vehicle. We stayed plenty warm.

Trailer Village RV Park when we first arrived before the snow fall

A snowy morning

In the morning, we woke up to a lot of snow. For those of you who don't know - our hometown of Los Alamos is at 7,600 feet and usually gets plenty of snow. This wasn't a unique experience, but not what we were expecting. The forecast for the day was for another 7 to 11 inches. Because of the rain the night before, there was also a nice under layer of ice on the roads. Yep, we would be staying another night. No way, no how, were we going to try to drive out and over the pass outside Flagstaff in this mess.

Here is a big difference between full-timing and us part-timers. We weren't expecting the snow and didn't have all our winter gear with us. Bad planners! We always have sweats and wool socks, but I didn't have proper footwear. Not that it stopped us from going on a couple of walks through the snow each day.

So, we made the most of it. We jumped on the Park Bus which picked us up right in the campground and headed to the El Tovar for an amazingly delicious breakfast. When Greg told the waiter he didn't want any bread because he was gluten free - they offered a basket of homemade gluten free muffins which were yummers! The meal was so delicious, we went back on Tuesday morning for a second breakfast.

Just hanging around waiting for the clouds to clear

El Tovar's Dining Room

Hopi House at Grand Canyon Village

We walked a short ways down the Bright Angel trail which was too wet and icy

We weren't going to let the snow or cold weather
keep us from doing our daily 1 1/2 hour walk
So beautiful! 

We spent some time walking around the Grand Canyon Village Historic District. We were surprised to learn that the donkeys went into the canyon even on snow days. We had a fun time. 

On the walk back to our camper, we stopped at the Canyon Village Marketplace. I think they have the biggest general store I have ever seen in a national or state park. The store was almost bigger than the stores in our hometown. The first night we ate soy dogs, chile and rice that we cooked in the microwave in our camper. The second night, we splurged and bought salads at the store and took them back to our camper. We had a relaxing evening reading and listening to the snow falling on our van roof. 

Even though the temps remained below 20, we were toasty warm.  

A cozy dinner in our warm and toasty camper.

The second morning (Tuesday) we awoke to more snow and low cloud cover, but with a few patches of blue skies. The roads in the park were still snow packed and icy. We checked online and found that by about 11 or 12 there should be a break in the weather. Our plan was to go back to the El Tovar, have breakfast and head out to take advantage of the weather break. 

On our walk over to the Village, we were alongside the canyon rim on the geology time trail. The clouds partially lifted and we were able to glimpse the beauty of the Grand Canyon. We were hungry, but luckily decided to stop and take a bunch of photos. Good thing! By the time we made it to El Tovar, the clouds/fog closed in again and you couldn't see anything. We literally were in the absolute right place at the right 15 minutes! Yeah for good timing.  

Oh, what a glorious morning!

Awestruck

After breakfast, we cleaned off the snow and ice from our camper and packed up to go. We left about 11, wanting to wait until the roads were warmed up enough to melt the ice.

Don't EVER stop for gas in Williams, AZ. It was almost $1 more than anywhere else. Lesson learned.

It lightly snowed all the way home, but we made it! The funny thing was that our toughest part of the drive was once we got near home. There was dense snow fog on the hill up to Los Alamos. We almost got stuck on our street trying to pull into our driveway. But, we were still glad we made the mad dash home. The next day was clear, but then Friday, Saturday and Sunday were some of the heaviest snow days we've had all winter.

What an awesome adventure!

Colorado River Trip - Part 4 - Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Valley of Fire, Snowbird Mesa

After my overnight in Vegas it was nice to be headed back out into the wilderness.  I drove southeast to Boulder City and then dropped down into the Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

(I have a link to a place I stayed overnight at the bottom of this blog.)

Map of Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

Boulder Beach Campground. 

Las Vegas Bay Area.

Las Vegas Bay area.

Pointing at Map.

The Lake Mead National Recreation area is huge and has a bunch of great camping areas with hookups and they are relatively cheap!  Ten bucks at some places like Boulder Beach. Five with a golden age pass.  I was impressed.  Karen and I will definitely spend time here in the future.

A primitive boondocking access road. Bumpy!

Designated Primative boondocking sites.

There are many designated boondocking sites in the vast recreation area.  I'm not exactly sure how they work but it appeared they were free to use after paying your park entry fee.  This little orange house symbol designates a primitive camping area.  Some of the areas had one site basically, some had wide areas where many RVs could fit.

Callville Bay Campground Area

Callville Bay Marina Area

Callville Bay Marina Area

Callville Bay was a pleasant area with some nice RV campgrounds.

Echo Bay area campground

Forever Resort company runs an RV Village at Echo Bay.  The best sites cost $30 a night (plus county tax) for full-hookups.  Forever also rents houseboats out of Callville Bay.  It would be fun to park an RV and take a houseboat out on Lake Mead for a few days.  They aren't cheap to rent. It looks like about $500 a day in May, $600-700 in mid-summer.  Split with some friends, it might be doable.

Echo Bay area.

Stewart's Point boondocking area. 

I drove down a bumpy dirt road to Stewart's Point, which is a boondocking area with a pit toilet. Stewart's Point can hold a lot of RVs.  It's right along the shoreline and seemed like it would make a great RV boondocking spot.  I plan to find out one day.

Somehow I passed popular Government Wash on my drive.  I wanted to see this boondocking area. I've read a lot about many RVers staying here.  You can stay 14 days by just purchasing a $10 weekly pass, it appears. What a sweet deal!  So close to "civilization" and yet so far!

Valley of Fire State Park view.

Valley of Fire State Park view.

Atlatl Rock Campground in Valley of Fire State Park.

Next, I cruised on up to the Valley of Fire Nevada State Park.  It's amazing and stunning. If Nevada hadn't made it a state park, I am sure it would be a National Park.  It's $20 to drive in and well worth it.  The park has a spectacular campground - the Atlatl Rock Campground - that I will definitely return to with Karen.  She will love it. She loves red rocks!

View towards Overton, Nevada from Snowbird Mesa.

Camping at the edge of Snowbird Mesa.

Towards sunset I headed to Snowbird Mesa (a.k.a. Poverty Flats) just south of Overton, Nevada. It's a popular boondocking site where I have read that many folk stay all winter long.  I can see why. It's a great spot with fantastic views.  I parked on the edge of the mesa facing the road to Overton below. After setting up my chair and fire ring, I was set and greatly enjoyed the evening.  I heated up a hot dog (soy dog) over my fire and enjoyed it.  What a fantastic view.

There were fellow boondockers all over the mesa area around me, but still no one was too close to anyone else, which made it nice.

A nice looking history museum in Overton Nevada.

The next morning I headed into Overton.  It's a really cute little town. They have a nice grocery store. I spotted this history museum from the road and pulled in to take a close look at the building.  The site was once an Indian village.  I plan to return and take a tour with Karen.

It's was time to return to Las Vegas and meet Karen at the Flamingo Hotel. I parked the van behind Bally's again and left it there for a few days while we were at the Flamingo.

I was happy that I had the chance to take a quick tour of so many cool boondocking spots along the Colorado river corridor.  It gave me confidence that a full-time RV lifestyle was not only possible, but really practical and totally enjoyable.  I will return!

Karen plans to write a post about the Vegas visit and then our return home via the Grand Canyon where we were trapped for a couple nights due to snow.

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Snowbird Mesa (a.k.a Poverty Flats) near Overton, Nevada MAP:
https://www.google.com/maps/place/36°29'07.0"N+114°26'48.2"W