Mom and Zach and I ventured out to the desert at the end of March for a marathon event (because what this spring needed was a major race and a whirlwind trip out west, right?). We honestly had a lot of fun, though.
The first stop we had was at the White Sands National Monument. This is an interesting little geologic site and worth the stop. It's not a national park, just a monument, so no wide-ranging trails or backcountry hiking like Yosemite or Zion or anything. But it's still a pretty bit of hiking, and definitely a good day trip if you're in the Alamogordo or Las Cruces areas. Be sure to check the park's website beforehand though - weather can make a difference to access, especially in the summer. As can the firing schedule of the nearby White Sands Missile Range. How many National Parks can you think of that have to worry about that?
The titular White Sands refer to the gypsum dunes which cover a large portion of the park. These dunes are in fact the world's largest gypsum dune field. The gypsum has eroded over the years from large selenite crystals which formed in an ancient lake which once filled the Tularosa Basin (the region where the park now sits). Selenite is one of the crystalline forms of gypsum, and as it eroded away, the now-granular gypsum began being picked up by the wind and moved around. (Bit of trivia - the winds need to be at least 17mph to pick up the grains of gypsum). The winds pick up the grains and blow them into dunes, which change shape over time. Since the winds are pretty steady from one direction, the dune field is actually gradually moving. Dunes in the center of the field can move 30-35 feet in a year, and build up to 60 feet high. Dunes at the edge of the field move more slowly, meeting resistance from vegetation at the edge of the field.
You can learn more about the geology which created these amazing dunes on the National Park Service Nature Site or on the White Sands website itself. And of course read about the plants and animals that have evolved to survive in such an unique environment too. But that's my science background talking - you could just enjoy the hike and pretty pictures too ;)
The gypsum comes from Alkali Flat and Lake Lucero, areas where the selenite is now exposed to erosion. An overlook on the edge of Alkali Flat is the turnaround on one of few trails in the park, the appropriately named Alkali Flat Trail. We're standing at the turnaround in the picture above (I'm pointing to where we are on the trail map). The trail is definitely one to do when you're at the park. It's about 4.5-5 miles, just walking through the dunes. As mentioned, the dunes are always blowing around, always shifting, so there is no actual path through them. You follow a series of orange signposts, like the one next to us. Sometimes you'll be able to see the next 4 or 5 posts across the dunes ahead of you. It's a very different little trail. Be prepared for lots of wind and exposure (I wouldn't want to do this trail in the summer heat) and definitely bring water.
The park regularly holds moonlight hikes and bike rides along Dunes Drive. Can you imagine these vast stretches of white sand in the moonlight? Must be gorgeous!
An unusual activity in the park is sledding on the dunes. And it's totally legit! They even sell saucer sleds in the park gift shop! (We just borrowed the pair we used. It was a wee bit too windy that morning to spend tons of time playing on the sleds.) The gypsum sand has different qualities than quartz sand (besides the color), and the dunes are very fine and soft, yet stable. Which makes them good for sledding, as it turns out. It's not the fastest sledding you'll ever do, but the dunes aren't that steep either. Of course, you can still get hurt, so use caution, be safe not reckless, watch where you're landing, yadda yadda yadda.
Also be warned that the sand, being as fine as it is, will be in your clothes and shoes for WEEKS! Zach was changing his shoes last week, and I looked at him and the clouds of something around his feet, asking "What is that?" "White Sand." Three weeks later!!
And yes, I did sled too. I took pictures as they sledded, then they filmed me going down when I took my turn. Whee!
And a last little thing. These are the picnic shelters below. With the winds coming pretty much unidirectionally, all the picnic shelters had these walls on one side. They look like little space ship pods, don't they? Especially in the areas where there were more of them clustered together, they had this kinda sci-fi sort of feel. One of those random little things about the park :)
To close, here is the only picture I have of all three of us in the park. We're all there, even if just in silhouette :)
You can learn more about the geology which created these amazing dunes on the National Park Service Nature Site or on the White Sands website itself. And of course read about the plants and animals that have evolved to survive in such an unique environment too. But that's my science background talking - you could just enjoy the hike and pretty pictures too ;)
The gypsum comes from Alkali Flat and Lake Lucero, areas where the selenite is now exposed to erosion. An overlook on the edge of Alkali Flat is the turnaround on one of few trails in the park, the appropriately named Alkali Flat Trail. We're standing at the turnaround in the picture above (I'm pointing to where we are on the trail map). The trail is definitely one to do when you're at the park. It's about 4.5-5 miles, just walking through the dunes. As mentioned, the dunes are always blowing around, always shifting, so there is no actual path through them. You follow a series of orange signposts, like the one next to us. Sometimes you'll be able to see the next 4 or 5 posts across the dunes ahead of you. It's a very different little trail. Be prepared for lots of wind and exposure (I wouldn't want to do this trail in the summer heat) and definitely bring water.
The park regularly holds moonlight hikes and bike rides along Dunes Drive. Can you imagine these vast stretches of white sand in the moonlight? Must be gorgeous!
An unusual activity in the park is sledding on the dunes. And it's totally legit! They even sell saucer sleds in the park gift shop! (We just borrowed the pair we used. It was a wee bit too windy that morning to spend tons of time playing on the sleds.) The gypsum sand has different qualities than quartz sand (besides the color), and the dunes are very fine and soft, yet stable. Which makes them good for sledding, as it turns out. It's not the fastest sledding you'll ever do, but the dunes aren't that steep either. Of course, you can still get hurt, so use caution, be safe not reckless, watch where you're landing, yadda yadda yadda.
Also be warned that the sand, being as fine as it is, will be in your clothes and shoes for WEEKS! Zach was changing his shoes last week, and I looked at him and the clouds of something around his feet, asking "What is that?" "White Sand." Three weeks later!!
And yes, I did sled too. I took pictures as they sledded, then they filmed me going down when I took my turn. Whee!
And a last little thing. These are the picnic shelters below. With the winds coming pretty much unidirectionally, all the picnic shelters had these walls on one side. They look like little space ship pods, don't they? Especially in the areas where there were more of them clustered together, they had this kinda sci-fi sort of feel. One of those random little things about the park :)
