“Castles, Kites and Concert” at the Great Sand Dunes National Monument and Preserve is Colorado’s Brigadoon fantasy.
Medieval castles line the beach at the Dunes (yes; there’s a beach, complete with waves reaching a foot high). Colorful kites fill the air. These joyful apparitions manifest themselves once every 365 days.
Sightings of the castles and kites have been reported for years. June 28 will be the magical day to watch for their appearances along the shore of Medano Creek, at the foot of the Great Sand Dunes, which rise more than 700 feet.
The architects arrive first, several dozen amateur and experienced sandcastle sculptors carrying pails and shovels, melon ballers, trowels, putty knives and Jell-o molds. Some prefer to work on their creations alone; most bring teammates and family members.
They sculpt feverishly from 9 a.m. to noon in this unusual competition in hopes of fashioning the most elaborate structure using only sand and water. Teams of up to six people pay a $5 registration fee; larger teams pay $10.
Judging takes place immediately thereafter with winners announced at 1 p.m. Three judges’ choice and one people’s choice award are presented, consisting of ribbons and gifts from the Great Sand Dunes book store.
When the breezes pick up in the afternoon, the free Kite Flying Invitational gets into full swing. This is a non-juried, non-judged event, merely an opportunity for devotees to show their expertise. All kites except propelled vehicles are allowed.
If you’ve made it a full day at the Dunes and plan to stay for the free 7 p.m. concert in the campground amphitheater, you might want to bring your own dinner. If you’re camping in the park, you’re probably already well prepared.
Concert entertainers generally are from the San Luis Valley, performing an easy-listening family program.
Until 2000, 38,000 acres of sandy hills at the Great Sand Dunes National Monument and Wilderness Area enjoyed protection. That year President Clinton signed a bill increasing the Monument’s area to more than 100,000 acres, protecting alpine lakes, tundra, six peaks more than 13,000 feet in the Sangre de Cristos, ancient spruce forests, aspen and cottonwood groves, and wetlands habitat for wildlife and plants.
Unless you’ve visited the Great Sand Dunes in late spring or early summer, you haven’t walked barefoot in Medano Creek or felt the pulse of the stream surging like waves upon a beach. Few places in the world experience this fleeting phenomenon, which can best be described as being in the right place at the right time.
A stream’s surge flow needs three ingredients to manifest itself: a steep grade (in this case, the 13,000-foot peaks of the Sangre de Cristos), mobile surfaces (the changing countenance of the shifting Great Sand Dunes) and surface water (Medano Creek). The pulsating stream surges in the form of waves, reaching a foot high and resembling wave machines at water parks. Only these surges are propelled by Mother Nature, herself.
Though the Sand Dunes seem to be desert-like, actually they depend on water from the melting snowpack, seeping beneath the surface, reappearing as ponds and providing the lifeblood for mammals, rare shorebirds and plants that have chosen an otherwise sandy home.
Camel crickets, found nowhere else in the world, seem to manage in their Saharan habitat. To compensate for the intense surface heat of the sand, kangaroo rats, beetles, spiders and crickets burrow deep beneath the surface, and reappear only in the cool of the evening.
Early and late on summer days, and all throughout the year, the Dunes are populated with surfers, snowboarders, snowshoers, kids on cardboard sleds and plastic platters, and all kinds of toys, except anything motorized. Hiking to the dunes’ summit becomes the challenge, then running, sliding, riding, sledding or sommersaulting to the bottom.
If you prefer getting into the back-country of the Dunes the easy and very scenic way, four-wheel drive tours can get you where the family sedan won’t. The tours are available through September; reservations are taken by Great Sand Dunes Oasis.
Lillian Ross is a freelance writer who lives in Howard.
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IF YOU GO
The Great Sand Dunes National Monument and Preserve is about 240 miles southwest of Denver.
The fastest route is via Interstate 25 south to Walsenburg, west on U.S. 160 past Blanca to Colorado 150, then north to the Dunes.
Choosing the scenic route, drive southwest from Denver on U.S. 285 over Poncha Pass and into the San Luis Valley. After passing Villa Grove, take Colorado 17 to Mosca, and drive east into the Dunes.
Admission to the national monument is $3 per adult; those 16 and under are free. Campsites cost $12 per night.
For more information about the Great Sand Dunes and the Castles, Kites and Concert event, call 719-378-6399.
Two-hour, 4-wheel-drive tours on the Medano Primitive Road are available for $14 per adult, $8 for children 5 to 11. Reserve tours through Great Sand Dunes Oasis at 719-378-2222.
