Medano Pass - Great Sand Dunes NP

[xj-grin]

So we decided on a whim to take a day trip to Great Sand Dunes today, and decided to go in "backwards", westward over Medano Pass. For those who haven't been before, two things (1) GO! (2) Medano Pass is kindof the backdoor into the park, coming over the Sangre De Cristo's from the Walsenberg/Gardner side, and dropping into Sand Dunes NP on the eastern edge at the mountains (main entrance is on the southwest side of the park). The mountains between the pass and the park are actually not part of the NP, but are federal land part of the Great Sand Dunes Nature Preserve, so it is somewhat a wilderness area with (1) a 4wd road, and (2) primitive campsites, complete with "bear lockers" -- the Sangres are big time bear habitat...

Without further ado -- we drove the 1.5 hours south of CS to Walsenberg, and headed west about 30 miles on CO Hwy 69 to the turn to FS Road 559 - Medano Pass. It was a perfect, if cool, day - 65 degrees. Medano Pass is a fairly uncomplicated 4wd road, really probably don't need to use 4wd all that much, except for the low range, as it is steep in parts (and has 9 stream crossings on the way back down into the park of Medano Creek...)

Just getting started, view of the Sangres from the start of the Medano Pass road:
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1133-1.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1134-1.jpg

Less than 1/2 way up, looking back at Spanish Peaks:
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1135-1.jpg

Cool road, great views:
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1136-1.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1137-1.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1138-1.jpg

We had a nice picnic about 3/4 of the way up, awesome views to the SE:
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1139-1.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1142-1.jpg

Coming over the top, with tremendous aspens on the way back down:
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1144-1.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1146-1.jpg

The first (and shallowest) of the 9 main-channel water crossings:
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1148.jpg

No. 2
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1152.jpg

[xj-grin]

Cont:

26 campsites on the park side, all have these big brown bear lock boxes... some real nice, real big, group type sites:
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1154.jpg

and then, all of a sudden...
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1156.jpg

The scale is just tremendous (second time this week I have been overwhelmed by the hugeness of it all)
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1157.jpg

Last crossing... just touched the rockers (34cfs today, they close the trail at 50 cfs)
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1161.jpg

WOW
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1164.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1166.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1170.jpg

Right where the NP starts, Medano Creek intersects the eastern portion of the dunes, creating this odd, semi-beach-like setting -- the sand is hot, the water is COLD -- the boys had a blast!
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1172.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1173.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1180.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1183.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1185.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1191.jpg

the beached whale is me...
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1178.jpg

[xj-grin]

Cont:

some knuckle-dragger types were boarding the dunes pretty well too!
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1194.jpg

Gorgeous!
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1203.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1205.jpg
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1208-1.jpg

Great day!:guitar::peace:

[YELLAHEEP]

Yep, definitely gotta put that on my "go see" list. Shoulda gone that way when I went to Pagosa Springs.....

[fireLt.]

Looks like an awesome trip. I'm with Yella, thats going on my list.

[snowboard3r411]

I love the sand dunes I was there as a kid long time ago

[snowboard3r411]

I love the sand dunes I was there as a kid long time ago

[illini2000XJ]

beautiful trail, by far one of my favorite. went last summer, and i am actually going in a few days before i deploy next week to slovakia. recommend to any one

[Fred]

:dunce:I did it when I was stock, lo these many years ago. Went too fast across the water crossings, bow waves coming in the vents! I don't think I understood the concept of four-lo back then.:dunce:

[xj-grin]

virtually every stock rig we saw up there had a front-license-plate-"boner" from running the water too fast. There was two drowned vehicles on the road on Sunday, one an XJ, but I couldn't find the owner to lend a hand. :roll:

[DJManche]

Very cool man I'll be taking this trip for sure this summer .

I've been wanting to take medano pass for years .
Did you head up Mosca pass trail to the glacier stream ?
Its one of my favorite places here in Colorado !

[xj-grin]

No Mosca this trip, since it was already a 12 hour day trip with two young kids. We may end up on Mosca next time around if I wimp out on Blanca...

[DJManche]

Yeah , I suppose you got to make a weekend of it . Seeing those pictures bring back allot of memory's from a couple of trips I took back in my single
without kids days .

[Gravesdiggerxj]

I've been to those dunes a ton as a kid

[XCastleXJ]

OH... EM... GEE... lol. as soon as im off work im calling up the boys to see when they want to set up a camping trip. thats incredible. from one extreme to another, both being gorgerous.

AHHHHH!!! i need out of this damn cast so i can get the jeep in shape and wheel!

[xj-grin]

Call the USFS/NP first -- there has been a fire burning at the park-side base of Medano for the past week or so, and @250 acres have burned. IDK whether or not the road is open, camping is open, etc...

[XCastleXJ]

dang, that's no good. thanks for the heads up, it'll be a late summer/early fall trip for me though, so hopefully everything will be ok by then.

[xj-grin]

I would think so. There will also be almost ZERO water in Medano Creek by that time, unless you luck out and go on the backside of a big thunderstorm -still way cool though, even without the "beach".:)

[Kiefer316]

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/cumminscd/Medano%20GSD%20May%2030-2010/DSCN1205.jpg
This pic makes me REALLY want to go. I have been once. But i was young.

[XCastleXJ]

I would think so. There will also be almost ZERO water in Medano Creek by that time, unless you luck out and go on the backside of a big thunderstorm -still way cool though, even without the "beach".:)


how late can i expect the water to be there?

[xj-grin]

My pictures were taken on the day of annual peak flows, 44 cubic feet per second. The State's gage at Sand Dunes is currently measuring 9 cfs today, and the historic graph indicates it will be down around 3-6 cfs by mid-July and for the remainder of the summer, with spikes up to 10-15cfs during big storms. That means a small creek in the campgrounds, quickly swallowed up to nothing once it hits the sand.:peace:

[ColoradoRaptor]

Our Club makes a run over the pass every year for Correctional Workers Week. It was the first weekend of June this year and we usually have between 20 and 40 vehicles in the group.