Guide to Great Sand Dunes: Tallest Dunes in North America

Look, if you're making a list of Colorado's national parks and Great Sand Dunes near Alamosa isn't near the top, you're doing it wrong.

Most people sleep on this place, which is honestly baffling once you realize what's sitting down there in the San Luis Valley.

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The Great Sand Dunes Numbers Are Legitimately Insane

The Great Sand Dunes stretch across 30 square miles and pack in 1.2 cubic miles of sand. Not only that, they're the tallest dunes in the entire United States, rising 750 feet from the valley floor.

The whole park covers nearly 150,000 acres, with the Sangre de Cristo Mountains looming behind it like nature decided the scenery needed to be even more dramatic.

Go ahead and try to wrap your head around that the next time you're complaining about sand in your shoes at the beach.

What You Can Actually Do at the Great Sand Dunes

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This isn't just "look at the pretty dunes and leave." Great Sand Dunes offers some killer activities:

Sandboarding and sand sledding: yep, it's exactly what it sounds like, and yep, it's as fun as it sounds
Medano Creek runs right through the base of the dunes during certain times of the year. It's Colorado's weirdest and best beach and it's rare
High alpine lakes and 13,000-foot peaks, if you want to hike beyond the dunes themselves

A Few Things Worth Knowing Before You Go

Summer sand temperatures can get absolutely brutal; we're talking scorching. Bring serious water. More than you think you need.

Great Sand Dunes is one of those places that earns repeat visits. Whether you're hauling kids or going solo, it delivers every single time.

KEEP SCROLLING TO LEARN MORE: Colorado is Home to the US's Tallest Sand Dunes

Colorado is home to the tallest sand dune in the United States known as the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Reserve.

The park and reserve's main dune area is about 30 square miles, according to the Great Sand Dunes.

Gallery Credit: Tim Gray

KEEP SCROLLING TO LEARN MORE: Colorado is Home to the Highest Bridge in the US

Colorado is home to many magnificent attractions, some that occur naturally, and some that are man-made. However, the Royal Gorge embodies both, with the highest bridge in the United States.

The bridge was built in 1929 and crosses the Royal Gorge at 955 above the Arkansas River, with a total length of 1,260 feet.

Gallery Credit: Nate Wilde

KEEP SCROLLING TO LEARN MORE: Colorado is Home to the Highest Vehicular Tunnel in the U.S.

At a maximum elevation of over 11,000 feet, the Eisenhower-Edwin C. Johnson Memorial Tunnel on Colorado's I-70 is the highest vehicular tunnel in the United States.

The first bore of the tunnel was opened in 1973 and named for former President Dwight D. Eisenhower, and the second bore was opened six years later, named for former governor Edwin C. Johnson.

Gallery Credit: Nate Wilde