MONAHANS, Texas (AP) - West Texas has plenty of sand but few sand dunes worthy of the name, so it is with a sense of adventure and wonder that people encounter the towering, timeless dunes of Monahans Sandhills State Park.
Visitors come from everywhere - 45,000 last year - to camp, cook out and let their children run and slide down dunes as tall as 50 feet.
Site Manager Michael Smith of the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department said the park’s 3,840 acres are in a giant dune field reaching northwest from Crane County into Southeast New Mexico. “We’re well-located and pretty much the only thing between somewhere and somewhere else,” Smith told the Odessa American (https://bit.ly/1UBcSev).
“It’s part of one of the largest shinnery or Havard oak forests in the world, 40,000 to 50,000 acres. The trees are mostly two to four feet tall. The dunes have been here for a long time. They blew in from New Mexico sometime after the last Ice Age and settled in the Permian Basin. They’re absolutely beautiful, an incredible resource.
“Spring break is busy, and we had 940 children and adults for Easter last year.”
Named for the late Conrad and Kathlyn Dunagan of Monahans, the Dunagan Visitors’ Center features a geologically based “Secrets of the Sand” section and rents green, blue and orange sand discs for $2.25 for two hours.
Admission is $4 for people 13 and older and $3 for 12 and under. Wax is provided to make the discs and toboggans slide better.
Opened in 1956 as a state park, the attraction is open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, and the visitors’ center is operated from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Camping behind big dunes here on Feb. 26-27, Boy Scouts from Midland’s Troop 331 had only seen crows and mealworms, but Smith said mule deer, red foxes, bobcats, javelinas, feral hogs, cottontail rabbits, jackrabbits, owls, hawks and other birds inhabit the park along with Dunes Sagebrush Lizards, which are only found in this part of the world.
There are 26 campsites with water and electricity, and there is a sewer dumping station near the entrance four miles east of Monahans off Exit 86 on the north side of I-20. The park is 33 miles west of Odessa.
Noting it only has five employees, Smith said, “We’d like to get another maintenance specialist and a park policeman.
“We have a Community Christmas in the Park with star parties, and we had 5 and 10K runs on the second Saturday in January with over 100 runners.”
Other staffers are Maintenance Specialists K.C. Bailey and Arturo Tevarez, Office Manager Pat Huff and Customer Service Representative Roma Chavez.
Rob and Kristin Merritt of Corpus Christi were here on the morning of Feb. 27, saying their two daughters were enjoying “Mount Everest,” the tallest dunes. “We’re on a long road trip, coming back from New Mexico, and needed a stopover to let the kids run around,” said Merritt.
“The idea of sledding down some sand was appealing. It’s unique among Texas parks.”
Sitting at a picnic table, Efren Lujan had brought his wife and three daughters. “We live in Monahans, so we come out pretty often on Saturdays and Sundays when the weather is nice, just bring the kids and get with the family,” Lujan said.
“The girls enjoy it and ask us to bring them. We’ll bring something to barbecue and spend all day sometimes.”
Mark and Lisa Holdman of Midland and their grandson were leaving their RV, one of a half-dozen in the area, in their pickup “to go gather up firewood and cook steaks and bake potatoes in a little while,” Holdman said.
“We’ve been here since Friday and will stay tonight. We like the whole scenario. It’s a place where our grandson can run.”
Scoutmaster Stonnie Pollock said Troop 331 often uses Monahans Sandhills State Park because it’s convenient and the Scouts enjoy it. “They like to slide down the hills, dig holes, chase one another and look at the stars,” Pollock said, adding that eight boys had made the trip.
“We try to do it once a month. It’s beautiful sand, and after the next windstorm you won’t even know we were here. Even a 20-mph wind will cover up every track.”
Aron O’Brien, 12, had been to the park numerous times. “I like running up and down the hills and riding the discs,” he said.
Twelve-year-old Joey Jeppesen said he enjoyed “playing in the sand and playing King of the Hill.
“The only wildlife we’ve seen were crows and mealworms in the sand.”
Nicholas McArthur, 11, said the boys “like sledding and playing Capture the Flag on different hills,” and 13-year-old Eagle Scout candidate Ethan Bohny said he had earned two merit badges here.
“I enjoy spending my time out here because it’s an opportunity to take off my shoes without worrying about stepping on stickers,” Ethan said. “I sleep in a sleeping bag on the sand and don’t need a pad.”
Twelve-year-old Tyler Becker had been demonstrating his gymnastic skills by doing back flips down the hills. “I like how smooth the sand is,” said Tyler, a new troop member making his first visit.
“I got to go sledding and play football. They dug a hole and I got buried. It was an amazing experience.”
TP&W Regional Director Mark Lockwood of Fort Davis said his department will address the understaffing during the 2017 state legislative session in Austin. “The park has been operating as it is for years and years, and we are in the process of making our desires known for the next biennium,” Lockwood said.
“We’re moving a quarter of our camping loop from the dune field because the sand moves in there and we spend a lot of energy moving sand. There are only so many tons of sand that you can effectively deal with.”
Lockwood said the park is leased to the state by the Sealy & Smith Foundation of Galveston, and the Friends of Monahans Sandhills State Park, whose president is Rex Thee, help support it. “It’s a unique opportunity as far as recreation is concerned,” he said.
Lockwood said the only comparable dunes in Texas are in a privately owned park 10 miles north of Kermit.
Kermit Sandhills co-owner Steven Underwood said he and his brother Tony encourage ATVs, motorcycles and utility task vehicles, or “side-by-sides,” and they stage races on 1,300 acres from Easter into October. Underwood said they’re building a large dance hall and have 15 RV sites with water and electricity.
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Information from: Odessa American, https://www.oaoa.com
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