Coral Pink Sand Dunes draw visitors with cool weather, beautiful scenery

The largest dune complex found on the Colorado Plateau, Coral Pink Sand Dunes in Southwestern Utah provide visitors with gorgeous scenery and unique experiences. Created by wind-driven sand grains eroded from the colorful Navajo Sandstone that underlies much of Utah's canyon country, the dunes are named for their vivid, rusty hue. Strangely, these dunes occur at 6,000 feet elevation in an area forested with pinions, junipers and tall pines. Only one other dune system sits at a higher elevation.

Because of its unusual geology and scenic appeal, the area receives protection as Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park. Popular with picnickers, campers, hikers and off-highway vehicle users, the park draws visitors year-round. Its elevation keeps it cooler in summer than other popular desert dunes and cold enough in winter that snow drifts form along the dunes.

Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park lies a few miles off scenic U.S. 89 between Mount Carmel Junction just east of Zion National Park and the historic town of Kanab near the Arizona-Utah border. Southern Nevadans reach it by driving north from Las Vegas into Utah on Interstate 15.

The shortest route lies through Zion National Park, but travelers must pay the national park entrance fee. Those with motor homes or trailers must also pay an escort fee to go through the Mount Carmel Tunnel to reach U.S. 89. Turn south on U.S. 89 and drive three and one-half miles to the first of two state park entrance roads. The second access road lies closer to Kanab. Follow the first road nine miles to the park entrance, where it joins the second access road.

Many visitors opt for the slightly longer route. After entering Utah, continue on I-15 to the junction with Highway 9 a few miles north of St. George. Turn there to reach Hurricane. In Hurricane, watch for the junction with Highway 59. Heading east toward Fredonia, Ariz., the route changes to Highway 389 at the state line. In Fredonia, turn north to reach Kanab. From Kanab, a pretty county seat with many Victorian-era homes, follow U.S. 89 north 13 miles to the second park access road. Turn there for the nine and one-half mile drive to the park entrance.

Expect to pay a $6 day use fee at the state park. Those planning to stay overnight in the park pay $16 per night. Facilities at the campground with 22 pull-through units include shaded tables, fire pit or barbecue, centralized water, and restrooms with flush toilets and hot showers. If you plan to visit this park on a weekend or holiday, reserve a campsite in advance by calling Utah's park reservation line weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at (800) 322-2800. Make online reservations at ReserveAmerica.com.

Just outside the park, the Bureau of Land Management maintains a smaller and more primitive campground at Ponderosa Grove. A smaller fee applies for use of this seven-unit campground with two additional group sites. Facilities are basic with pit toilets and no water.

Travelers who frequently use state parks in Utah should consider buying an annual Utah parks pass for $75. This pass entitles you to free entrance to all Utah state parks and $2 off nightly camping fees. Do not confuse the Utah parks pass with the federal parks passes that apply to national parks, recreation areas and other federal lands.

Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park encompasses 3,730 acres with 1,000 acres open to off-road vehicle use. Other sandy areas remain for nonmotorized uses like hiking, sliding and sand play. A 235-acre area preserves the habitat of the Coral Pink Dune beetle, an insect found nowhere else. Boardwalks assist visitors on foot to cross the soft, salmon-colored sand in some places. Photographers seek the best shots in this dramatic landscape where colors are most intense early and late in the day. Nights find park visitors marveling at the natural light show of stars and planets far from city lights that dim their sparkle.

The gravel road that continues past the park takes the adventurous through miles of beautiful gorges and canyon bottoms filled with summer wildflowers.

The road emerges on the Highway 59/389 near Colorado City.

Margo Bartlett Pesek's column appears Sundays.