Can you raise a low side for a pool with sand?

We did just that. I bought a small above ground pool for the kids last summer (15' diameter) and our yard wasn't level. Digging in the red clay proved impossible so we decided that instead of trying to lower the high end we'd raise the low end with sand. We bought mortar sand, not play sand, and spread it in the area that needed to be raised. Once you add water to the sand it stays in place very well. So well, in fact, that even after the pool was taken down the sand still stayed in place for months. The pool held up the entire summer but the cost of the sand was about as much as I spent on the pool (about $200).