4:05
The air holds still for a long moment until the wind picks up and the ground begins to stir. Grains of sand shift, and soon the entire dune turns kinetic, vibrating hypnotically. To the north, the wall of dust moves incredibly fast, covering ground at the rate of about 50-miles an hour judging by the known landmarks it passes. Soon it will be upon us, and I can hear a steady roar in the distance long before the wind arrives. At the last minute, Dave packs up his camera preparing for what is about to break loose.
The strongest winds in Arizona have been recorded in this section of the desert where immense dust clouds roll across a landscape as wind-carved as any in North America. Rain falling at long intervals rough cuts the terrain, leaving the wind to do the finish work. It sweeps down from the San Francisco Peaks forty-five miles away, sand-blasting a line of red cliffs rising near the dunes. The abrasive winds grind away, shaping the rock into strangely-shaped monoliths called hoodoos.