The other dunes of Death Valley are all situated on flat valley floors, but these are perched on a slope. Hike about one mile from the Saratoga Springs Road for access. An old talc mine at the base of the Saddle Peak Hills overlooks the dunes from the east. The Mojave fringe-toed lizard lives on these dunes. A pale mountain of sand appears to hover over the flat valley floor.
Rugged cliffs loom high above, boldly striped with pink, gray, and black.
The distant yipping of a coyote is interrupted by a mysterious rumbling sound emitting from the dune itself. Welcome to Eureka Dunes, one of the newest additions to Death Valley National Park. The Eureka Dunes lie in the remote Eureka Valley, an enclosed basin at 3000 foot elevation located northwest of Death Valley. The dunes cover an area only 3 miles long and 1 mile wide, yet they are the tallest sand dunes in California, possibly the tallest in all of North America. They rise suddenly more than 680 feet above the dry lakebed at their western base.