Shifting Sands

What is it about the shifting shapes of sand dunes that absolutely fascinate me? 

It’s the excitement of seeing the piles of sand at different heights and widths in the distance, knowing the closer I get the more massive the shapes will become, the more they will change and the more detail I will see. 

It’s watching the way light reflects and changes the shadows.  It’s seeing animal tracks and determining if they are lizard, snake or insect. 

It’s examining plants that can survive in that environment and finding artifacts whitened by the sun. 

It’s feeling the breeze as I watch the sand move and ripple forming a new shape.  It’s walking barefoot and feeling the grains between my toes. 

It’s learning and experimenting with the camera trying to capture the wonder.

It’s knowing that I have to be smart and have water and know where I parked the vehicle because I know how easy it is to become lost in the sand with the hot sun beating down and only having footprints to follow with no place to seek shelter.

It’s realizing that as I stand in awe of tiny grains of sand, I am part of the vast landscape.

from our recent road trip through Death Valley National Park - The Big Dune area