Medano Creek begins flowing at Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado

It's that time of year again when Medano Creek starts flowing in the Great Sand Dunes National Park. It has a shallow, gentle flow right now and it's flowing with small, braided channels with a total width of 10-20 feet about one inch deep. 

The creek emerges from the forest before making its way to the dunefield. Peak flow in an average year is 40 cubic feet per second which typically occurs in late May or early June. 

This year's snowpack above the dunes is about 70% of the average for this date, according to the National Park Service. Because of the creek's popularity, late May and early June weekends are typically crowded with long lines of traffic, overflowing parking lots, crowded beach and full campgrounds. 

The National Park Service has a website dedicated to the creek's conditions as well as additional information about planning a visit to the popular park.