Let’s just say that if you want to drive your small car or sedan up the road to the Zapata Falls parking lot, you are doing so at your own risk.
We drove our Honda Pilot, and even then I hoped it would make it through some of the ruts and and pot holes and around or over the big rocks in the road.
All occupants of the vehicle really ought to wear a sports bra, the jarring is just that significant.
We finally made it to the crowded parking lot and found a spot in the overflow parking. The trail to the falls, was almost as crazy and bumpy as the road itself.
We hiked in to the Zapata Falls, which was not a very far hike at all. There were lots of families with young children making the hike as well.
You would want to wear water shoes as you have to walk upstream through the river to get to the falls. I saw so many people not equipped as they walked in flip flops, bare feet, or soaking their tennis shoes. Be safe.
The falls were gorgeous. I thought I was seeing all of the falls, and then as people moved out of the way and it was Chris’ and my turn to move forward, I walked a little further upstream and looked up.
Awesome. It was totally worth the effort. And I am not a get your feet wet in freezing cold water kind of girl. Our water shoes were great for the rocks in the river, just know that if you happen to stand on a wet log, the water shoes may not work quite as well. Just saying.
We returned to our car and prepared for the bumpy descent back to the main road. I could not believe that people were hiking up from the parking spot off the main road. It was at least a two and a half mile climb and hot. Maybe they knew the limitations of their vehicle.
It was a rather short distance from Zapata Falls to Great Sand Dunes National Park. The dunes were impressive even from a distance.
We had to wait in a line of cars at the entrance to get into the park, but since we had a park pass, we moved right on through when it was our turn.
We found a shaded picnic table for lunch and then on to the dunes.
Chris wore his water shoes, and that was not a good choice. The sand can be as hot as 150 degrees and he had hot sand in his shoes nonstop. Wearing socks with his water shoes would have helped a ton. And a "ton" seemed like the amount of sand collecting in my shoes. I told Chris there was so much sand in my shoes there wasn’t enough room for my feet anymore!
We climbed part way up the dunes, watching many young people and families sand sledding on the dunes and then pulling out the wax to add another layer to their board for another trip down. Sledding was a commitment. You had to be willing to hike back up to the the top of the dunes once sledding down.
I watched one girl with a board hiking back up. She would dig her board into the sand in front of her, take a step, dig in a little higher up, take another step. It was a workout for sure. Walking up the dunes and through the sand was tiresome but fun. Apparently, there is a river that runs in May and June and makes the experience so much more enjoyable.
On to Pagosa Springs.
As you drive to the Springs, the road takes you through an amazing mountain pass and past the beautiful town of South Fork. As we continued on, Chris and I both commented on the road signs announcing two hair pin curves on our way down the mountain.
Prior to reaching the first hair pin curve, road signs alerted us to a scenic overlook. But if you weren’t paying attention, you would miss it. Chris decided at the last possible moment to stop.
And the scenery did not disappoint. The valley below reminded me of stories I read as a young girl.
Just after the next hairpin, we pulled over to hike the Treasure Falls Trail. I would imagine that this Fall is even more impressive in the Spring with the run off, but still it was beautiful and not too strenuous of a hike either.
We drove through the cute downtown of Pagosa Springs past the hot springs and on to an area of town with all kinds of vacation rentals. It was beautiful with a small lake, lots of greenery, and mountains surrounding the town.
We checked in to our “home” for the next two nights and went in search of dinner.
Using Yelp to assist with the choice, we decided on Italian with Gustoso Ristorante Italiano. It was okay, but the wait took a long while and they forgot our dessert. Chris didn’t trust them to deliver the food to us and popped on over to pick up our too-small piece of cheesecake. We figured with all of the mixups and long wait, they would have comped us something or added an extra piece of cheesecake, but no.