At the Great Sand Dunes

The Great Sand Dunes are one of the wonders of Colorado.

I was headed for Wyoming but I had also decided to take the winding scenic route. After watching sunup on Mt. Capulin I made my way through Red River and then up the San Luis valley to Great Sand Dunes National Park.

I tried to venture out onto the dunes but the wind made it brutal on the sand. So for a different view I hiked into the hills behind the campground and photographed the dunes from a distance. It was a new view for me. It also allowed me to photograph the dunes, mountains and fall color all in one image. See the first image for that view.

The dunes also made an interesting subject for the long lens as the distance had compressed the waves and ridges. See the second image for that view.

Not a bad second day to make for the dunes.

I went out the next morning and it was still breezy but significantly better than the prior afternoon. I made a few images of the stars over the dunes but was less than impressed with what I got. None of them were as good as these two images.

And with that is was off across the state.