April 28 and 29 Alamosa Colo.

Left Santa Fe in the 30's, and the day never really warmed up. Drove up a wide barren valley with snow-capped mtns on each side. As we moved into the Sangre de Cristo Mtns bare ground gave way to scattered junipers, then sage, then pines. We picked Alamosa as halfway between Santa Fe and our Golden/lakewood destination. After setting up camp, a short storm came through, with slushy hail instead of rain. Tonight's forecast is 18 deg but we're cozy. 

S has not felt well today, with waves of nausea. We hope it's just a passing bug.

Thursday morning 24 deg, not as cold as predictedbut ice on the car's windows. S feeling better. After breakfast we set out on a day trip to Great Sand Dunes National park, 30 miles away, not knowing quite what to expect. The dunes, up to 700' high, cover 10 sq miles at the foot of a high mountain range. To access the dunes, we waded a shallow river (Gracie was hesitant, but loved it), and hiked about 1/2 mile over level sand to the foot of the dunes. They are popular for sliding down on a sled or board, which we didn't do, or hiking far up the hills. We didn't do that, either. We just enjoyed the hike and the scenery. Reportedly, the park is jammed with visitors in another month, but not very many people were there today. 

Did some shopping in the afternoon, then had a pizza delivered. Tomorrow we head for the homes of M and P near Denver, where we'll stay a week. The blog may go dark for that time.