NPS/Patrick Myers A few of the regional tribal names for Great Sand Dunes: Tribal Consultation It is the mission of the National Park Service (NPS) to tell the stories of our country. By conducting tribal consultation, the NPS learns so much more about the landscapes that we are charged with protecting and interpreting. The benefits of the consultation are many, including the transmission of multigenerational cultural knowledge, continuation of traditional use practices resulting in connection with the ancestral landscape, protection of resources by engaging future management partnerships, and communication of Native American perspective and interpretation to the public. On This Page:
Photo Gallery Jicarilla Apache 4th Grade Fie...20 Images In May 2024, Great Sand Dunes hosted a very special and unique two-day field trip with 4th grade students from the Jicarilla Apache Nation in Dulce, NM and Sangre de Cristo School in Mosca, CO. Students threw spears with atlatls, extracted magnetite from the sand, learned about traditional crafts and flintknapping, listened to traditional stories, and hiked to a 500-year-old ponderosa pine that was peeled for food and medicine by tribal ancestors in the 19th century. Sessions were all led by Jicarilla Apache tribal members, including elders, artists, and Great Sand Dunes Park Ranger Jaiden Garcia of the Jicarilla Apache Nation. Rocky Mountain PBS filmed the field trip as part of the creation of a curriculum about Jicarilla Apache culture, ecological practices, and history for Colorado 4th grade students. Photo Gallery Jicarilla Apache Cultural Even...20 Images In 2019, two groups of Jicarilla Apache tribal members set up a large tipi beside the visitor center, demonstrated traditional clothing and crafts, did storytelling, and presented an evening of dance. Cultural Highlight: Jicarilla Apache Star Stories Video Player is loading. This is a modal window. The media could not be loaded, either because the server or network failed or because the format is not supported.
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Tribal Elder Bryan Vigil shares some traditional Jicarilla Apache stories about the North Star, Big Dipper, and Milky Way. NPS video description: The video opens with an image of Jicarilla Apache elder Bryan Vigil inside a tipi, with a campfire below him. For most of the video, Bryan sits beside a younger Apache man telling star stories, with the dunes and mountains in the background. Photos of the North Star, Big Dipper, and Milky Way over the dunes appear as he speaks of each one. Photo Gallery Tribes at Great Sand Dunes11 Images A gallery of members of some of Great Sand Dunes affiliated tribes during visits to the national park and preserve. Photo Gallery Zuni Cultural Presenters Curti...7 Images Curtis Quam and Octavius Seowtewa presented Zuni culture and heritage at the visitor center in July 2023. Photo Gallery Dineh Tah' Navajo Dancers with...9 Images Shawn Price and the Dineh Tah' Navajo Dancers presented ceremonial dances at the park Amphitheater in June 2023. Earlier in the day, Shawn gave a lecture at the visitor center about the historical context of the Navajo Treaty of 1868. Photo Gallery Ute Elder Roland McCook Presen...5 Images Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve was honored to have Ute Elder Roland McCook present Ute culture and history at the amphitheater to an audience of 80 visitors in July 2022. During the presentation, Morgan Dawn Allen and her daughter provided materials and helped children make free beaded bracelets. This special event was made possible due to the generous support of Western National Parks Association. 
NPS/Patrick Myers Sisnaajini: A Navajo StoryBlanca Peak (14,345 feet/4,372m), located just south of Great Sand Dunes, is one of four sacred mountains to the Navajo (Dine') people. In this 8-minute video podcast, Park Ranger Ravis Henry sings and tells their story of Sisnaajini - the White Shell Mountain, as well as the importance of Great Sand Dunes to his people. For clearest and fastest viewing, choose the best resolution for your connection and device using the icons at lower right. Closed captioning also available. Special thanks to Timothy Begay and Tamara Billie of the Navajo Nation for their ongoing input and consultation with Great Sand Dunes staff. |
Last updated: March 5, 2025