Life will never be the same after your first trip to the Glamis Sand Dunes. America has some amazing off roading places but none are quite like Glamis. With roughly 125,000 acres to explore it can be overwhelming. Hopefully we can quickly answer some of the questions like how to get there, where to park, what permits do I need, where to get food, water, and dump. These are all just a small part of the checklist of items to make your first trip successful. Getting there seems to be half the battle while the other half of the battle is making sure your equipment is up to the task.
Vehicle Parking Permit
Unfortunately Glamis Sand dunes is a pay to play from October 1 to April 15. When parking/Camping on site you have two options. First you can purchase a full season Pass for 150 for Season. Every year I personally purchase my Season Pass From the American Sand Association HERE (portion of the fee will go to help support The fight by ASA). Second option is to buy a week pass HERE for $35 off site prior to arriving or $50 on site. Plan to know your travel dates for your Week pass as they will scratch the month and days for your trip when purchased. Advantage you can purchase in advanced and store in your vehicle for when you arrive. If you travel to the Glamis May thru September no parking permit is required for access.
You will need a pass for every vehicle that travels in on its own power. If a Pre-Runner truck or similar vehicle is brought in on a flatbed for offroad use it will need a OHV sticker or a non Resident sticker. Motor homes will need a pass but not the flatbed or enclosed trailer behind. A truck with fifth wheel or flatbed, will have to have a pass for the tow vehicle and so on. A regular car full of people coming out will need a parking permit. Rangers have been known to walk through camp and checking for parking permits. Tickets will be handed out by Rangers if passes are not properly displayed on vehicles. Basically as soon as you turn of the Highway and the vehicle hits the sand it will need to have proper parking pass or offroad permit (green sticker if local or Non Resident OHV sticker for out of state)
Non Resident OHV pass
If you are arriving from outside of California you will need to have your current state registration up to date to start. Then upon arrival at Glamis Sand dunes you will need to obtain a NON Resident OHV pass. This can be acquired for $30 at the Rangers station or Sweet Maries on Gecko RD. Or you can purchase on your way to Glamis at one of these vendors. The pass must be placed visible on the vehicle and is good for the calendar year printed on the pass. So if you come twice, once in November and once in February you will need to purchase 2 Non Resident passes, one for the current year and then one for the following year. Upside is you come back in November that same year you are covered. Side note all vehicles in the sand must be registered and have a safety flag that measures 8′ from ground to tip. Click Here for all other Glamis Rules and Regulations. Follow this LINK to the California State park website for more information on Non Resident Permits.
Vehicle Registration a must
All vehicles must be registered with California or the state that you reside in. From your sand car, SXS, golf cart, kids quad, and dirt bike all must have current registration. In years past I have seen rangers and police walk into camps for one reason or another and stay for a long time. once in the camp they have a tendency to look around and make sure all the vehicles are registered or you must show proof of ownership or it will be towed from the premise back to the holding lot. I always camp on Gecko Rd and every year at one point or another I see this happen. Tow trucks show up and start removing vehicles from a camp due to no registration or even worse stolen. If you frequent the Sand Drags area by the ranger station on Friday, Saturday nights of a busy weekend the rangers are out in swarms looking for this. Make sure you have a Flag on your vehicle and get your papers straight so you will have no issues.
Where to Camp
Glamis is a first come first serve place. You can camp almost where ever you want as long as you can get there. There is technically a 14 day limit as with all federal land but it is lightly enforced. There is a small area of private land by the Beach store but other than that you are free to make camp where you see best. There are 2 general destinations: 1 being the store and the washes (the biggest area numbered from 3-25+) and 2 being Gecko road area. This includes cement flats, the canal, and all the pads on Gecko. I have created a different page that better describes all of your options HERE. First timers May find that camping by the store is the best option, you are close to resources, and there is a lot of open area to find a spot. Wash road is pretty safe for all vehicles traveling down but as soon as you turn off the sand has a tendency to get softer and the chances for getting stuck increase. Many times it may be good to get out and walk it or use a more capable vehicle to scout out your route to prevent getting stuck. If you are not familiar with driving in soft sand with your truck or RV please read this to help prevent getting stuck.
Is food, water, and gas available
Glamis Sand Dunes is a dry camping area. Meaning you must bring your own water meaning that there is No public access to water or dump site for your rig. Simply put Glamis is a pack it in and pack it out destination. There are places close to Glamis within 30 minutes depending on your drive in you may stop in town before finishing your drive. Almost everyone as the drive in will pass one of these towns which includes Yuma, El centro/Brawly, and Blyth being the closest. Gas must be purchased ahead of time as there is no Gas pumps on site. Some Vendors may offer some race gas in barrels but not regular pump gas. If you didn’t bring enough of something during your stay you can survive as long as you brought your money. Vendors row has several good food options and the Beach Store will have Basic groceries along with a variety of drinks and snacks.
Camp is set up: Now what?
This is when the fun starts and you start to explore the Sand Dunes. The imperial Sand Dunes are open from Highway 78 to the north,irrigation canal on the West side, and train tracks on the east, and all the way south to the Mexico border Wall. You have roughly 125,000 acres to explore. Glamis same dunes is the northern area and the most popluar, Gordons Wells is the area north of Highway 8, and Buttercup is the area south of highway 8 to the border wall. It is roughly 25 miles from highway 78 to the border. Be aware that there is a small area in between southern Glamis and North of Gordons Well a little east from the sand highway down to Gordons Well that is clearly marked and is closed to riding to a protect an endangered plant.
Now that you are ready to tackle the dunes there are many destination spots (Top Destinations) in the dunes that are the top sights to take in. You have several hills such as Oldsmobile, Slide, and China Wall. Or places like Flagpole, or everyone’s favorite the SwingSet. The late afternoon you will find people at the Sand Drags, located by the Ranger station on Gecko rd, or The Ledge (Sunset Hill), with after dark trips to Oldsmobile for some nighttime shenanigans. Many people ask for GPS coordinates of each location, which I hate, but you can look up online and some other sites list them for you. My point is that Glamis is there to be explored and driven through. With a Blue dot on the screen people drive straight line through the dunes to the dot. This leads to a horrible ride, increased risk of crashing, and not much fun at all. A trip through the dunes should be an experience like riding a roller coaster without the rolls and flips. Its okay to drive through the dunes and not end up somewhere. Stopping at the top of a random dune, taking in the view while drinking dune waters with friends and family is what it is all about. If you need more help finding your way through the dunes then click HERE as I have put together a page with some tips and tricks to navigate the Dunes. First rule as a new duner is never drive straight over a dune unless you know what the back side looks like. Many times the dune will drop straight off and you will nose into a hole and ruin your weekend. When cresting a dune you must go left or right along the top till you can see the back side before turning down, never out drive your vision, and drive a speed your comfortable with. If in a group setting and you have a good leader he will double back if you drop off. The key to a successful trip if to make Safety Paramount.
Dune etiquette
When traveling in the dunes there are no real laws or order to follow it is a free for all. You can go wherever you want whenever you want. Here are several things that you can do to make sure everyone has a good trip. Always pay attention to the people in your group and scan for other groups. Know how many cars/vehicles are traveling with you. Watch your mirrors to see if someone drops off and is no longer behind you, if you are new and in the middle of the group, it may be better to just stop at a high point to signal to the group ahead that someone is missing behind you. Or say you are last in line and get separated always go to the closest highest point so you are easily seen. Do not sit in the bottom of a hole, they can ride right by and not see you. If you have a good leader they will notice missing vehicles and double the group back your direction to help who ever needs it. If you are in a group and come across another group DO NOT TRY TO CUT TROUGH the other groups line. Just sit and wait till the other group has completely passed and then move on. Many times in the dunes you may see some random vehicle sitting out there by themselves. A good leader will circle around and double check they are okay or have help coming or with them. This may slow down your ride but believe me if the roles were reversed you would hope that group would stop and check on you. Remember we are all from different places but we are all family out there. This helps keep your dune karma in good standing. Lastly when you get to any destinations in Glamis and you are partaking in adult beverages make sure you CLEAN UP AFTER YOURSELF. PACK IT IN PACK MORE OUT. Clean up a couple extra cans or trash because people out there suck. We need to keep the sand as clean as possible!
