Kelso Dunes, Mojave National Preserve

Tatooine, er, Kelso Dunes, from the "trailhead"

I hate to make people jealous, but I have a confession: I’ve been to Tatooine. I’ll be even more honest – it wasn’t at Star Tours, and it wasn’t through any related Star Wars video games. And, as a further disclaimer, I’ll let you know that I haven’t gone completely around the bend yet, and it didn’t take place in a dream, or within the confines of my own head. Did you know that on Tatooine, the sand talks? In certain places, you can feel it saltating against your legs, and you can hear the whispering plink plink plinks as it bounces off your body. Even more interesting, when you’re out in the deep mountains of sand of its far reaches, you can hear the dunes peak to you with a deep bass timbre, in rumbling chords of booooom sssssssss boooom.

 Midway up the Kelso Dunes

But, before you call the men with the white coats, let me clarify where exactly on Tatooine I’ve been: I’ve been to the Kelso Dune portions of the planet only. What’s that you say? There’s no Kelso on Tatooine, and that the Kelso Dunes are on this planet? Fiiiiiiiiine, you got me. I am right about all of the above though – the sand in the Kelso Dunes talks; and if you’re there at the right time, it booms and sings – one of the few networks of sand dunes on the planet that does!

Directions: Head three light years past...alright, alright. If you’re in the Mojave National Preserve, you’re going to want to find Kelbaker Road, which will take you to the graded gravel turnoff. And, actually, if you’re outside the park you’ll want to take the Kelbaker Road exits from the I-15 or the I-40 as well. If you’re coming from the North, you’ll pass through Kelso before you get to the Dunes. Do note that there is no gas within the entirety of the Mojave National Preserve, so be sure to fill up prior to entering the park to explore.

View South from the Kelso Dunes - the distant line is the "trail" The Trail: Actually, there is no trail. Once you reach the parking area for the dunes, there is a pit toilet, some interpretive panels, and a short quarter mile segment heading due North into the dunes. From that point, it is every man, woman, and stormtrooper search party for themselves (and you thought I was done with the Star Wars references). It took me about an hour to reach the summit of what I perceived to be the highest dune from the parking lot.

While this may sound like an incredibly short distance; let me assure you that as you are headed uphill for almost the entirety of the hike/walk/desert trek/exploration, it is actually quite difficult and strenuous at times. Oh right, I forgot to mention why it is difficult: you are trekking uphill in sliding, slippery, shifting, foot sucking sand. Even if it is not hot when you are doing this, you will work up a sweat if you are headed to the top, I guarantee it. Should you not be headed to the top dune, you will also work up a sweat traveling around the dune field, as it is rigorous work at times. From the parking lot you can travel as short – or as long as you wish; however due note that dune travel can be disorienting, and should you head to a far far away dune, make sure you can orient yourself back.

 Dune sliding - tallyho!

Tips: If you’re going for photographs, I’d say the best times are either early in the day, when there are no footprints, or late in the day, when the light changes in the desert. My other tip is to get out there and enjoy the dunes. This is one of the few locations where off-roading is prohibited, so you can run, jump, slide, roll, and do just about anything down dune hills without the fear of being squashed by a vehicle. My suggestion: take a sled; old snowboard; lunch tray; inner tube; or anything that you can slide in; and head up part or all of the way up a dune and then slide down. And, if you don’t have a sliding object that you can use, head up, and slide down with just your feet causing as many savalanches of your own as you want.

Supplemental Tip: If you’re coming from the North, and you’re hungry, I recommend you stop in Kelso, where the National Park Service has renovated the old train station, and its diner, The Beanery. It’s a great spot to learn more about the park, and experience some of the history of the region. (http://www.nps.gov/moja/planyourvisit/beanery.htm)

See you in the sand!

More Information: http://www.nps.gov/moja/planyourvisit/upload/MOJAmap1.pdf, http://geomaps.wr.usgs.gov/parks/mojave/kelso1.html, http://geomaps.wr.usgs.gov/parks/mojave/kelsosand.html, http://www.mydreamcametrue.com/dreamdesert.htm, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelso_Dunes