INTRODUCTION
As always, you can view the photographic narrative for this story below. What is a photographic narrative?
This is the story of an adventure into Great Sand Dunes National Park in southern Colorado, en route to Breckenridge for a friend’s bachelor party. I left my home on the morning of September 18th, 2024, with the goal of arriving in Alamosa, CO, later that evening. The drive time was slated to be about thirteen hours. I’d just gotten a new car the weekend prior, trading my 2012 Chevy Cruze for a new-to-me Volvo XC60, so the drive provided an opportunity to get acquainted with the new steed.The quiet interior, pleasant ride, and 600 watt sound system served me well on my way through southern Arizona and New Mexico. The sun fell below the horizon for the night as I passed Sante Fe, and from there, was driving in darkness, eventually ending up at a Hampton Inn in Alamosa. That two tour buses of tourists had near-completely booked the hotel meant my King Suite (the only room left) was about three-hundred dollars for the night. But with limited other options, the price didn’t really matter.
After a satisfying Hampton Inn breakfast, I loaded my luggage into the car a little after seven o’clock, and set out on the road once more toward Great Sand Dunes National Park. After clearing the limits of Alamosa, traffic was scarce. And by the time I pulled onto the final road to the national park checkpoint/fee station, I was the only car around so far as I could tell. After showing my annual parks pass, I drove straight to the main Great Sand Dunes Parking Area, donned my hiking gear including gaiters (which proved extremely high yield), and set out over the sand.
There are no real trails over the dunes, giving one’s adventures a satisfying character of exploration on a whim. My own whims drove me to the top of the most prominent ridges and dunes I could find, maintaining as much solitude as one could hope for. Careful to reapply sunscreen regularly, I spent about three hours hiking around to my heart’s content (or should I say, tachycardia) before eventually hiking/sliding my way back down to the parking area. From there, I got back on the road, driving toward Breckenridge for a weekend of continued fun in the mountains. As always, I captured this experience in the photographic narrative below.
A STORY IN PHOTOGRAPHS
