The Magic of White Sands National Park
After days of driving through cactus filled desert landscapes, arriving at White Sands made us feel like we had entered a different world.
This National Park felt different than those previously visited and as we passed through the gates, we were greeted by the cutest little old Park Ranger truck parked out front. Eager and excited, we continued to drive deeper into the park. The dunes becoming whiter and whiter with each passing moment. With the entire area being sand dunes, there was no walking path needed to stay on or plants to worry about treading over. Instead, visitors could park where was convenient and simply venture out into the dunes in any direction they desired. People were spread out from one another, some sledding down the sand and some just on walks up and down the slopes. We couldn’t help but smile when we saw how much fun dogs seemed to have running along side their owners on the cool sand. This park had a sense of open freeness to it, coupled with being one of the quieter places we had visited so far. The type of place you could go to, find your own spot in and simply take in the wonder of the location.
We kept reminding ourselves that we were not looking at freshly fallen white snow, but instead a very unique type of sand. The dunes here at White Sands National Park consist of a mineral called gypsum, which collects here in the Tularosa Basin as the result of runoff from the nearby mountains. By passing through those National Park gates, we had arrived in the largest gypsum dunefield in the world, right in the middle of the state of New Mexico.
In White Sands, we experienced all kinds of weather. Days where the air had a cold chill with snow remaining on the shaded sides of dunes as well as days so windy our footsteps vanished within minutes; the sky white with sand in the air. We even had warm days with the sun shining strong on our skin yet the sand under our bare feet cool and comfortable. Never too hot to walk on due to gypsum not retaining heat from the sun in the same way silica sand does, so different from what we are used to at the beaches near home. There is a quietness to the park, with sounds of cars and people muffled by the surrounding sand. Though the ability to walk any direction makes for endless exploring in this park, the option of marked trails are there some to destinations to learn more about the geography of the landscape and some to bring you far out into the dunes with the trail markers there to keep from getting lost. We did both during our time here, and went through a lot of sunscreen since this unique sand reflects light in the same way snow does.
We spent more than one evening cooking dinner in one of the picnic locations within the park, with the bus parked right next to our own table and grill. With our food prepared, we would walk out into the dunes with our blanket over our shoulder and lay it down once we found a preferred spot. It was hard to decide which direction to look as the sun set over the white dunes, towards the sun going down over the distant mountains or the purple glow coming from the other direction with the moon glowing into sight. We were truly surrounded by absolute beauty. We did this for many dinners, before packing up the bus and exiting the park just after dusk to find our nearby campsite for the night.
Walking hand and hand through the dunes gave us a feeling unlike anywhere else we had visited together; and that was the feeling of a peaceful connection to the natural wonder that surrounded us. Feeling the sand between our toes while watching it glisten in the sun made for an environment we felt fully engulfed in. Here we were not following the same path as all other visitors- we had the freedom to choose a direction of untouched sand as far as we could see and venture there together. The individual exploration allowed for the feeling of being present, and being present brought about an appreciation for this place in the world unlike anywhere else.
