The temperature on the Valley floor on the morning of Jan. 21 was -14 Fahrenheit, with a slightly warmer temperature of -8 at the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve visitor center. In most years, the Valley floor will drop into the -20s F at some point during the winter, and occasionally into the -30s F. The average low in January on the Valley floor is -2 F. The record low temperature for the Valley is -50 F in 1948. According to the National Weather Service, the coldest place in the United States on Jan. 21 was near Grand Lake with a chilly -40 F recorded.