This Underrated Utah Park Has Pink Sand, Giant Dunes, and Some of the Most Stunning Sunsets in the West

""Otherworldly" is a word that's thrown around to describe a number of places around the globe-from driftwood beaches and volcanic wonders to polar landscapes and rock formations with a stunning array of colors. It can also be used to illustrate the scene you'll find at Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park in southwestern Utah. Sitting at 6,000 feet above sea level, the 3,730-acre Utah state park is known for its gorgeous pink sand dunes, which are particularly striking at sunset."

"In more scientific terms, the dunes formed because of something called the Venturi effect. As winds move between the Moquith and Moccasin mountains, the velocity increases and carries the sand grains from the sandstone. Once the wind enters the open valley, the velocity decreases, and the grains are deposited. The dunes themselves are estimated to be between 10,000 and 15,00 years old (but this area wasn't opened to the public as a state park in 1963)."

Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park sits at 6,000 feet in southwestern Utah and covers 3,730 acres. The dunes' pink sand originates from erosion of nearby Navajo sandstone, whose reddish-orange color comes from iron oxide hematite. Wind funneled between the Moquith and Moccasin mountains accelerates (Venturi effect), carries sand grains into the valley, and drops them as velocity decreases. The dunes are estimated to be about 10,000 to 15,000 years old. The park is open daily during daylight hours year-round, with best visits in spring, early summer, or fall; concessions operate March through October. The park is the only known home of the rare Coral Pink tiger beetle, which appears on warm mornings and late afternoons in specific months and must not be collected.

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