Recall saltation:
Sand grains dancing on the wind
Can create mountains.
Under a restless windThey jump, twist, and shudder on,
Overtaking pines.
It was my first visit to Great Sand Dunes; it’s funny how a word you haven’t used in polite conversation in decades (or ever?) effortlessly pops back into your vocabulary. As did “barchan” and “parabolic,” though the Park Naturalists didn’t seem to know what I was asking about. How tiny the people are.
August 8, 2009
2 comments:
Very cool. Very few North Americans know about or understand the startling sand formations within this continent.
Great pics.
I *love* Great Sand Dunes! When I lived in CO, I visited there at least a 1/2 dozen times. My favorite time to visit is in June, when Medano Creek is running strong through the fringe of the Dune-field; it's like a weird, wonderful beach.
I visited again when I was passing through in 2003, brought telemark skis, and spent a few hours skiing the dunes. Very slow descents, but actually an easy way to cover ground on the sand.
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