You want to fix the hunt?
Remove the sands...
Let only the minions/vanity gear.
By adding the sand, you changed something which have the design of a side occupation the people do for fun in a over competitive, drama creating main occupation...
You wanted add an other way for people to obtain the sands, i can understand, why you chose to do it by ruining a system who would have been fine as time consuming side quest for fun and vanity?