The Ultimate Great Sand Dunes National Park Quiz

Estimated Completion Time
2 min
The Ultimate Great Sand Dunes National Park Quiz
Image: iStockphoto.com/Henryk Sadura

About This Quiz

The highest sand dunes in North America are found in the Great Sand Dunes National Park of Colorado. Take this quiz for a virtual tour of one of America's newest and most majestic national parks.
Which mountain range casts its shadow over the Great Sand Dunes National Park?
Mount Guerro
Sangre de Cristo mountains
Rocky Mountains
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The park lies beneath the Sangre de Cristo ("Blood of Christ") mountains.

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Where is the park located?
Southern Colorado
North-West Arizona
Eastern Oklahoma
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

It is in Southern Colorado.

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When was the park established?
1994
1996
2000
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

It was established in 2000.

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What is the area of the park?
64,670 acres
84,670 acres
94,670 acres
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

It covers an area of 84,670 acres (28,318 hectares).

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What is the terrain of the area?
sand dunes and prairies
high mountain plateau and sand dunes
sand dunes, desert valley, alpine tundra, and forest
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

It is a combination of sand dunes, desert valley, alpine tundra, and forest.

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How large an area do the dunes cover?
30 square miles
40 square miles
70 square miles
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

They extend over more than 30 square miles (78 square kilometers).

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According to archeological findings, when did man first inhabit this area?
7,000 years ago
8,000 years ago
9,000 years ago
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Humans walked the area about 9,000 years ago.

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Where do you find the biggest dunes?
outer sand sheet
inner dunefield
the valley
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

They are in the inner dunefield.

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How much sand do the dunes contain?
three billion cubic meters of sand
four billion cubic meters of sand
five billion cubic meters of sand
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

They contain five billion cubic meters of sand.

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How were the dunes created?
Winds blow the sand into the valley.
Rains wash the sand down from the mountains.
Flash floods of the creeks deposit sand on the banks of the valley.
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Winds from the southwest and northeast blow loose sand into the valley.

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How high are the tallest peaks?
15,000 feet
14,000 feet
13,000 feet
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

They are over 13,000 feet (3,962 meters) high.

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What insects are unique to the dunes?
giant sand treader camel cricket
desert praying mantis
windscorpions
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The Great Sand Dunes tiger beetle and the giant sand treader camel cricket are found nowhere else.

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What trees thrive here?
spruce, mountain mahogany, and box-elder
maple, alder, and juniper
pine, aspen, and cottonwood
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The forests are populated by spruce, pine, aspen, and cottonwood.

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What dune is the tallest one visible from the visitors' center?
Mosca Dune
High Dune
Tijeras Dune
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

High Dune is the tallest visible from the visitors' center, although it's not the tallest in the park.

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What is the elevation of this dune?
650 feet
750 feet
850 feet
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Its elevation is 650 feet (198 meters).

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What waterfall exists in the park?
Sand Creek Falls
Medrano Falls
Zapata Falls
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The Zapata Falls gush out of a rock crevasse into a pool of cold water.

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From which vantage point can you see the Tijeras and Cleveland peaks, Music Mountain, Wet Mountain Valley and upper Sand Creek Valley?
San Juan Lookout
Music Pass
Mosca Pass
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

You will need to climb the steep trail up to Music Pass.

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What are reversing dunes?
They were formed by winds blowing in opposite directions
They are formed when vegetated sand prevents parts of the dune from migrating.
They were formed when rain coming from the opposite direction to the wind eroded the dunes.
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

They are the largest dunes and were formed by winds blowing in opposite directions.

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How were the Barchan dunes formed?
winds blowing in different directions followed by rain in a single direction
winds blowing in all directions
flat land, unidirectional wind and no vegetation
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

These half-moon shaped dunes resulted from ideal conditions of flat land, unidirectional wind and no vegetation.

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What is special about the Medano and Sand Creeks?
complete clear tranquil waters
rhythmic waves
very wide variety of marine life
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

They have rhythmic waves caused by a pulsating flow.

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You Got:
/20
iStockphoto.com/Henryk Sadura