dunefreak

The weather has shaped up nicely. The W has subsided and the sun is out. It's now in the mid to upper 50's and feels great. The snow covered mountains make for some gorgeous backdrops today.

I woke up this morning to the sound of a strong breeze. Just as I opened the door and looked outside at the sun coming up from the horizon, my collapsible trash can decided it wanted to go duning. I wish I had a GoPro on or someone was filming me because it had to look hilarious. I was full sprint, running after it as it rolled about 20 mph toward the finger dune. I hoped it would slow down when it got there but instead the turbo must have spooled up because it took off! I was within 10 feet of it the whole time. I ran about 3/4's of the way up the dune before I gave up. It was cruising! I hopped in the sandcar to go looking for it but it was nowhere to be found. It's probably in Baker by now. So if anyone finds a beige, collapsible trash can please let me know. There's your morning dune report. Other than that it's gorgeous out here. So anyways, it's a little breezy. There are about 4 camps total and the dunes are great in some spots and still funky as hell in others. I might be turning my paddles around because it's still pretty damp. We'll see. I might just take it easy.

We rolled in earlier this evening and I was quite surprised how fast the river was flowing. It was only a few inches deep, but it was flowing fast as hell and it covered almost the whole concrete pad. We got settled in and have been relaxing all night. It's nice and quiet out out here. There's maybe 2 or 3 other camps, if that. The sky is extremely clear tonight and there are so many stars. In addition to Vegas, of course, you can also see the glow of Baker. The sand is still pretty damp about 5-6 inches below the surface. Tomorrow morning will tell for sure how good the actual dunes are. I'll throw another update up tomorrow.

One of the largest and most popular holiday weekends is coming to Dumont Dunes, President's Day Weekend. Since the early 70's, the Las Vegas Jeep Club has been hosting their annual Jeep Jamboree at Dumont. This event, consisting of hill climbs and drag races, has possibly been the sole reason so many duners have made it a weekend tradition for the last 45 years. Come out and watch some of the coolest Jeeps, trucks, dragsters and side x sides race at Dumont. More info here. President's Weekend is always hopping so don't forget to keep your head on a swivel and watch out for each other. Vendor Row should be full and Comp Hill is always lit at night. Be sure to stay legal because the rangers will be out in full force keeping everyone in check. If you need a refresher, here is a list of the rules. Holiday Passes are required from Feb 14 thru Feb 20, 2017. If you don't have a holiday season pass, you can purchase a $40 weekly holiday permit on site from the machine or you can grab one from a participating off-site vendor. See a full list here. If your OHV isn't registered in your home state, don't forget to grab a CA non-resident use permit sticker. Dune Mart on vendor row has them and the Dumont visitor center sometimes has them on hand. Everyone have a fun, safe weekend out there. As always, send us your dune reports and use the hasgtag #dumontduneriders on Instagram. We'll do our best to feature your photos!