DESERT SPINE

DESERT SPINE, a photo by Jeka World Photography on Flickr.

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GREAT SAND DUNES NATIONAL PARK AND PRESERVE:

Great Sand Dunes National Monument was one of the many United States national parks and monuments created during the Great Depression (1932). In its original form it covered only the dunes themselves. However, it has expanded significantly since its roots, due in large part to concern among residents of nearby communities about the need to protect the watershed containing the dunes. Recent actions in 2000 and 2004 led first to the creation of a "preserve" adjoining the monument, and then to the designation of the combined monument/preserve as a full-fledged national park.
[edit]Landscape
The park includes North America's tallest dunes, which rise over 750 feet high against the rugged Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The wind-shaped dunes glow beneath the rugged backdrop of the mountains. This geologic wonderland contains over 30 square miles of massive dunes, and also includes alpine lakes and tundra, six peaks over 13,000' in elevation, ancient spruce and pine forests, large stands of aspen and cottonwood, grasslands, and wetlands--all habitat for diverse wildlife and plant species.