Devils Playground

The Kelso Dunes are notable for the phenomenon known as
"singing sand" or "blooming dunes". It has some of the highest
dunes as much as 600 feet.
The magnificent dunes form only a small part of a much larger
sand transport system that includes the Devils Playground.
There is a larger area of eolian sand deposits within the
Mojave National Preserve. Wind is mostly derived from
the Mojave River.
We used to go there with homemade dune buggy's and a large
group of others. Each taking there bragging rights as to which
buggy would go faster, climb better, looked better.
These particular dunes were unlike the dunes at Glamis,
with there infamous "Oldsmobile Hill", down by Brawly.
They were so tall and sharply peaked, we called them razor backs.
As you climbed to the top the buggy would come over and the front
end would drop sharply down.
There were what we called "bowls", a deep bowl shaped hole.
When you went down into the bowl many times you had to go round
and round to get back out. If you slid down whether it be the buggy or
your rear end that's when you would hear the singing sand.
Night riding was the blackest of black, with only the headlights of
a trail of buggies. We were most always in the lead, doing what we
we called ridge running, where you zigzag back and forth over the
top of the dune. I would never have found my way back, day or night
to camp, but others had an uncanny way of knowing. Once there
we sat around a huge campfire and told tales of the day.
If the winds would blow at night the camper would rock to and fro.
Those winds could be quite ferocious. In the morning as you stepped
out, it was amazing. The dunes were smooth and looked as though
nothing or no one had been there. Ridges of swirling sand making
patterns as if they were whipped cream, always taking on new form.
Daytime storms were worse, the sand stung as it hit your face, always
wearing goggles and covering the face , some would set out for a
morning run.
In those days with limited money for pleasure, fixing a buggy was
beg and borrow. Many times we took parts we took parts off our
Volkswagen to use on the buggy for the weekend, then put it back
for work on Monday.
There are a lot of good memories from those days, not much money,
but a family together making memories.