I managed to squeeze in a quick trip to one of my favorite spots in Colorado, the Great Sand Dunes National Park yesterday.  The plan was to get out to the Star Dune, the highest point of the dune field and shoot sunset and the amazing textures of the sand ripples around the dune.  It’s a pretty long and strenuous hike to get to the Star Dune but I had plenty of time before sunset and nothing better to do than torture myself climbing 700 ft high drifts of sand while getting microdermabrasion on any exposed skin.  The wind was sustained at about 35 mph with some incredible gusts that were almost knocking me over.

Nature's Fury

Notice the blowing sand off the foreground ridge!

There were times when I couldn’t even turn around to face the mountains and set up the camera.  I was able to capture a few shots only because the camera was protecting my face and I could kind of see what was going on in the viewfinder.  I thought I was witnessing a beautiful sunset but I honestly couldn’t see it unless I looked through a viewfinder.  As you can imagine this whole ordeal was very frustrating and I cursed a lot and very loudly at the wind but I wasn’t giving up.  However I didn’t make it all the way to Star Dune.  I didn’t see the point.  I was on the ridge leading up to it, blowing around in the wind and getting sandblasted so I didn’t think the conditions were going to be any more pleasant if I climbed higher.  So I found a decent location for sunset, not based on foreground elements or interesting composition but rather based on how tolerable the blowing sand and wind was.  So therefore I don’t have any “winners” as far as composition goes from this trip but the clouds did turn a magical pink and with some cropping I was able to get a few shots.

Pano

And here is one more I liked from earlier that day taken on my way up the dunes from the south.  I like how the sky had so much definition and drama and I thought the dunes and snow covered peaks created a cool contrast.  And of course a sky like that begs for a black and white conversion so I got to play around with Silver Efex Pro again.

In The Clouds

No matter how many times I go to the Dunes and how much I scream at the wind and the loose sand under my feet, I end up loving the place even more and always come away with some winning images.  The conditions there are so extreme but that’s what makes for interesting photography.  Now I have the sand in my gear and clothes and the discomfort of scratched cornea as an annoying reminder of my adventure but it is always worth it in the end.  Not getting lost on my way out in the dark without a GPS unit is a sweet bonus as well