On Thursday, while Mike worked on unpacking his bags. We took the boys to Great Sand Dunes National Park. The mountains were beautiful. I had never seen anything like them before. But the sand dunes were crazy! (Yes, those specks at the bottom of the picture are people!)
A movie in the Visitor's Center explained how the sand dunes were created. It seems the dunes were formed from sand deposits from the Rio Grande (and the streams coming from that). Then the wind picked the sand up and carried it until it hit the mountain. This process continues to happen today. The wind reshapes the dunes on a daily basis and the streams keep bringing the sand back. I know, the kids were thinking, "yeah, yeah, whatever" too. But Phil and I thought that was cool!
Super might not have been as interested in how the sand got there, but he made up his mind that he was going to climb to the top. The top is about 800 feet high. That may not seem like much, until you realize that you have to climb up sand. And that it's not just one dune. It's one dune that goes up 100 feet, then down 50 feet. Then another dune that goes up 50 feet, and down 25 feet. Then another dune that goes up 100 feet, and then down 25 feet. You get the idea. It's like a Stairmaster...in the sand.
Tutone and I got about halfway up and then he decided he was finished. I was just as glad to let him take the blame. "That's right, he can't make it any further. Sorry, that's too bad. " But Super was determined and there was no stopping him. I told Phil that we'd see them back down at the bottom. And we waved goodbye. Tutone and I made our way back down while they continued the climb up.
Don't you know that kid made it all the way to the top? He was mighty proud of himself. And he should be. When we got back to our B&B, The AppleLodge, we found out that in the all time that they had owned their place (which to be fair was only three or four years) only three other people that had stayed with them had ever made it to the top. And, of course, they had all been adults.
Super said it was one of the two best vacations in his whole life. Our family reunion where he gets to see his cousins being the other one. Yes, he is for real.
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