Great Sand Dunes tour


I was fortunate last week to have a few hours to coker tour the Great
Sand Dunes in the San Luis Valley. I have solar work that takes me to
some incredible places, so I always try to throw a MUni or Coker into
the truck. This time it worked out great for me, as my work finished
early. I have driven by this place many times before, and have played
in the dune fields before with my family. This time I had two hours to
get in a Coker ride so I parked the truck about 10 miles from the
visitor center and pedaled away. I had no real gear with me besides the
Coker, so I carried a water bottle and camera, and rode with my work
clothes. The weather was fantastic, 50 degree's F, with a pretty good
SW wind. The skies were Colorado blue, and I had the road to myself.
This was an out and back trip with very little elevation change.
The Great Sand Dunes Nat'l Park is nestled against the rugged
Sangre de Cristo Mountains, and is the magnificent centerpiece of a
natural system that includes high mountain peaks, (4-14ers ) sparkling
streams, powerful winds, and -of couse- billions of grains of sand. The
huge dunes-tallest in North America-compise only 11 percent of the 330
square mile park. The tallest dune is 750' tall.
As I spun towards the park entrance the spectacular dunes kept
getting closer and closer. The afternoon shadows being cast upon the
dune fields by the many ridges where quite a site. One doesnt see the
complexity of the dunefields until you get close and the lighting gets
just right. I had to stop and take a couple of pictures as it was to
much to just ride and look. As I neared the visitor center building, I
noticed that there was a small crowd outside. Sure enough, they were
waiting for me to arrive, and had the door open for me. I pedaled right
into the building and immediately had a 20 minute Q & A session. The
rangers were very interested in the "Coker" and unicycling in general.
This was a pleasant suprise from my last National Park experiance. The
dunes from the visitor center are totally encompassing and inspiring. I
wanted to go run to the top of the highest one, but did not have the
time.
I mounted and spun back to the truck feeling really good. Even
though the ride was not Epic, it was still a wonderful life experience
to have. All of the people that I met were very interesting, and I
think that I had a positive influence on their day. Being in a
spectacular place and then seeing something very unique like someone
unicycling on the open road in the middle of no where is cool! What a
difference two hours on a Coker, or just doing something fun outside,
can make on a persons attitude. Cheers.


+-------------------------------------------------------------------+
|Filename: Great sand dunes photo's001.JPG |
|Download: http://www.unicyclist.com/attachment/10552 |
+-------------------------------------------------------------------+

--
aspenmike
------------------------------------------------------------------------
aspenmike's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/3768
View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/44570

.