Miles: 225
Route: Santa Fe, NM - White Sands National Monument
Sarah and I made the four-hour drive from Santa Fe to Alamogordo yesterday. It was quite a remote drive - we were on state or county roads the whole time (not even one interstate highway) - but the driving was easy and the views of New Mexico's open plains were nice. Plus, we started a new book on tape to keep us occupied.
We had views like this pretty much the whole time.
Alamogordo is a small town that seems to only exist to serve tourists like us who visit the White Sands National Monument and to host friends and family visiting loved ones stationed at Hollman Air Force Base. There are a lot of cheap hotels and pretty much every chain restaurant you can think of (Sarah's actually pretty happy about that part!). We had a quick dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings - not our favorite experience, but the food was good nonetheless - and got to bed early.
We woke up early today so we'd have a full day to explore the white sand dunes that make this area famous. We watched a short video at the Visitor Center to learn how the gypsum sand dunes formed then headed into the park. Given that it is the middle of the week in October, the park was practically deserted...but we didn't mind having the place to ourselves!
The first views of the white sands. Unlike any place we've been before!
Like I said, we had the place to ourselves. We stopped under one of these shelters to eat our lunch.
Sarah took advantage of the open spaces and did a cartwheel in the sand.
After we ate lunch and filled up our water bottles, we drove to the north end of the park to take a hike through the dunes. Unlike other hikes we've done, this one did not have a path - just a series of markers to guide you. We never lost track of them, and there were footprints in the sand to reassure us that we weren't lost, but it did feel a little isolating to be alone in the middle of a desert...
There wasn't anyone else there to take a picture of both of us so we had to settle for solo-shots today.
We passed this plant along the way. Given how much the dunes are moved by the wind each year, some plants have developed extremely tough roots in order to stay put. This one used to be on top of a sand dune, now it stands on its own.
Walking into the desert.
Nothin' but sand dunes and mountains.
At the halfway point of our hike we arrived at the Alkali Flats. Beyond our view (closer to the mountains) is Lake Lucero which is responsible for the annual gypsum creation that eventually becomes the sand dunes.
We slightly underestimated the length of the hike. You would think the signs in the park would clearly explain how far a hike into the desert would be before you embark, but it was not labeled on any of the park's maps. Anyway, we were expecting around three miles but by the time we could see the parking lot again we'd just walked past the five mile marker. Good thing we brought an extra bottle of water!
We returned to Alamogordo for a frozen custard at Caliche's as a reward after completing the long, hot hike. We rested at our hotel for a few hours but then returned to the park for sunset. The welcome video at the Visitor Center notes that the best times to photograph the dunes is at sunrise and sunset - and they were definitely right!
If it weren't still 70 degrees by sunset we might've thought the dunes were snow!
While we were waiting for the sun to set Sarah tried out the sled she bought at the gift shop. Turns out gypsum is a little more difficult to sled down than snow.
Almost sunset...
...and here's the shot we've been waiting for!
Our trip to the White Sands National Monument was an amazingly unique experience and, despite its very remote location, we'd highly recommend it to anyone taking a tour through the Southwest. Tomorrow will be the first of two days of driving to get to Alabama by Saturday to watch the Crimson Tide take on the Aggies.