When I set out to write my hiking guide (Urban Trails Reno), there were few trails I had to visit more than twice. A lot of the trails, I was already familiar with, and they required nothing more than a formal run-through. Others that I visited for the first time were straightforward: Here’s the start; here’s the end; and here’s what I found in the middle.
There was one trail, however, that irked me with its neediness. The Dune Trek at Washoe Lake State Park required more dedication, because it wasn’t simple nor straightforward, and at times it didn’t show up at all as a trail in the wild and shifting landscape in which it’s set.
This hike made it into my guide because it is an adventure unlike any other in the area. It feels like a different world, provides a challenge and hones navigation skills. Plus, it offers stunning views of snowcapped mountains over the lake.
The dunes run about 2.5 miles in length along the eastern shore of Washoe Lake. They’ve built up over thousands of years as droughts drained the lake, and winds blew the freshly revealed sediment to the east, where it caught in sage and other shrubs. These dunes are home to many plants and are only bald in steep or particularly exposed spots.
“Treasures” can be found hidden in the shrubbery, such as animal bones and, one time, the deflated body of a coyote. The dunes feel like a very wild place—which, in part, is what endears me to them.
“The dunes—they’re such a remarkable place, because it’s ever-shifting and ever-changing,” said Jennifer Dawson, Washoe Lake State Park supervisor. “So you could walk on it one day, and it would look a certain way, and then you could return months later, and it would be slightly different. It’s a unique experience.”
Because the dunes shift, the trail can be impossible to find in spots. Signs along the trail read “100% of the trail is very soft; 100% of the trail is unstable.” Stability refers to the trail’s ability to hold shape under the pressure of footfalls and weather. This trail holds zero shape.
It also proved to be a creative pursuit to map. I used an app called CalTopo to map trails for my guide, which not only tracked where I walked, but also allowed me to create notes and pin particular points along the route. For a lot of the trails I mapped, there might be a smattering of notes to remind me of trail features when writing later—like “this is the point where downtown comes into view” or “trail splits here; keep right.”
The Dune Trek map in CalTopo looks like it has chicken pox; notes are placed, at most, 200 feet apart. There are places, though, especially in the beginning of the route, where notes like “fully in dune now,” “dune sign buried,” “keep straight?” and “to right might actually be the trail” occur every 40 to 50 feet.
As the dunes progress north, it becomes slightly easier to navigate, as signs are posted on about every other hilltop.
“I tried to make it so that if you’re standing at the high point, you could see the next sign,” Dawson said.
Slightly. There’s still a great chance of getting off trail at some point (or multiple points). “With the dunes always moving, sometimes the signs fall down; sometimes you can’t see that next waypoint,” Dawson said.
During my initial hike here, I mistakenly followed what I thought was a trail to the side of a pond. A stampede of wild horses flashed by me, splashing through the shallow waters and scaring off a pair of American avocets. Though I lost the trail—and created a new waypoint: “trail swoops left WEST” and then, 10 feet later: “keep water on RIGHT”—I got to have this incredible experience.
All of my harping here is not to dissuade you from trying your hand (foot?) at the Dune Trek.
“In some ways, it’s nice to get lost in the dunes,” Dawson said. “I mean, not officially lost, but to just lose yourself, too.”
I agree. While I rag on this trail for not really being a trail, that’s the reason why I love it so much. Dawson considers it one of the highlights of the park.
My recommendation is to not let the potential loss of trail discourage you, but rather think about this as an adventure more than a hike. Be sure to bring a map or navigation of some sort, and be mindful of where you are in relation to major features on the landscape.
“The good thing is that you have areas that you can look at to help navigate you. You have the lake; you have the Virginia Range; you have the Sierras,” Dawson said. “It’s not necessarily like you’re going to get completely lost. … If you just stay parallel to the lake, you’ll be fine.”
The best way to access the trail is to enter Washoe Lake State Park ($5 fee for Nevada residents), and take the first right toward the campgrounds. Keep to the right, and follow signs for equestrian parking. Park near the bathrooms and day-use area. Walk to the other side of the day-use area, and keep a keen eye out for a wide trail that heads west toward the lake. Walk along this path for about a half-mile, at which point you’ll find the first and easiest-to-identify trail sign for the Dune Trek.
Generally, from here, keep to the left of all of the ponds, and then keep an eye on the crest of the dunes for more trail signs.
If there is precipitation, Dawson advised, the dunes themselves won’t necessarily be muddy, but the valleys between them might be. Any snow on the dunes will make travel harder, but not impossible.
“I’m actually surprised sometimes that more people don’t know about us,” Dawson said. “I talk to a lot of people that were like, ‘Oh, we’ve never gotten off on this exit. We’ve lived in Reno for 20 years.’”