The Corralejo dunes, and the origin of the sand

Where the sand comes from

It is sand of marine and biological origin: shells, the remains of calcareous organisms and seabed sediment, deposited on the coast by the sea and carried inland by the wind. Hence its pale colour, very different from the volcanic black of the rest of the island.

That means the dunes are a system connected to the sea. They are not a parked heap of sand: they are the visible part of a transport chain that starts on the seabed and continues on the wind.

Why that changes how you visit

If the system depends on the sand moving, anything that fixes it alters the system. Hence the access points and routes, and hence why it matters not to tread on the edge vegetation, which holds the whole together without stopping it.

• ·No vehicles across the dune field.
• ·No camping and no fires.
• ·The park beaches have specific access points; leaving them is not «finding a spot», it is walking on the mechanism.

The practical part, which here is the wind

This is a coast exposed to the trade wind. In strong wind, suspended sand is genuinely unpleasant: it stings and gets into everything. That is why it is worth checking the wind forecast and not only the sunshine.

And the same two warnings as in any dune field: the sand burns at midday, and walking on soft sand is far more tiring than it looks.

When they look best

Early or at sunset, with a low sun: that is when the relief appears. And with light wind, if what you want is to stay a while. In strong wind the spectacle is different — you can see the sand travelling — but it is not comfortable.