White Sands National Monument/NPS

White Sands National Monument in New Mexico doesn’t have the elevation of Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve in Colorado – most of the dunes we hiked on were well under 100 feet high – but it is no less of a cool place. Nestled into the Tularosa Basin just east of Las Cruces, New Mexico, this 275-square-mile box of white gypsum sand is the largest of its kind in the world. Alamogordo is actually the closest town to White Sands, but we were traveling down I-25 from Santa Fe, so stayed in Las Cruces.

In the most recent Ice Age, the one that also helped form the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes at Kobuk Valley National Park in Alaska, gypsum was eroded from the surrounding mountains and collected into what is now known as Lake Ortero. As that Ice Age retreated some 12,000 years ago, the gypsum deposits on the lake bottom had grown to as much as 3 feet thick and were exposed to the wind. As the exposed gypsum crystals were broken down into smaller particles, they became the white sands that we see today.

The dunes here are very close to the water table, which does two things. First it allows for vegetation to grow. Deep roots on plants such as the skunkbush sumac will hold sand in place and create pedestals when the surrounding dunes move on. These little vegetation islands provide denning habitat for kit foxes. The second advantage of a high water table is keeping the sand moist and firmer than regular dunes. This makes for great hiking.

There could be unexploded bombs in some parts of White Sands National Monument/Jim Stratton

For over 100 years, nearby residents knew they were living next to someplace special. The first attempt to protect these sands was in 1898. when residents of nearby El Paso, Texas, proposed Mescalero National Park. That didn’t fly and neither did a proposal in 1922.  But in 1933 President Herbert Hoover listened to a group of Alamogordo citizens and used The Antiquities Act to create White Sands National Monument. 

In addition to the recreational opportunities that abound here, White Sands is also known for its military history. The monument is surrounded by the White Sands Missile Range (think atom bomb testing) and Holloman Air Force Base, and the monument is occasionally closed for missile testing. There are signs at trailheads warning hikers not to approach any ordinance they might find stuck in the sand.

We started off at the Works Progress Administration-built visitor center to get oriented on what to do and where to go. This is a very classic adobe style building at the center of a national historic district protecting all the WPA era buildings at park headquarters. 

This is a fee park, and the eight-mile road leading to the Heart of the Sands picnic area begins at the entrance station. There are several great trails to explore along this road, and there are lots of signs about what you cannot do in the dunes, including having alcohol from February 1 to May 31. This was a bit confusing until we learned that this was a big spring break party spot…until NPS banned alcohol.

Within the first couple miles is the Dune Life Nature Trail, the Playa Trail, and the Inter-dune boardwalk. We did all three and each was a bit different.  

The Dune Life Trail is along the edge where the desert scrub meets the gypsum sands. It is a mile loop that got us into lots of vegetation and vegetation pedestals. There are 14 interpretive trail signs hosted by Katie the Kit Fox, the trail’s mascot, marking the way.  This is a well-designed and interpreted trail.  

The Playa Trail is a half-mile out and back trail that took us to the edge of a small dry lakebed that seasonally has a bit of water. Skip this one if you are short on time.

The accessible Boardwalk Trail is a not-quite-half-mile out and back trail that is a self-guided experience interpreting the wildlife and vegetation in the heart of the dunes.

White Sands can be a harsh environment/Jim Stratton

But by far the best way to experience the white sands is to take several hours and hike the 5-mile-loop of the Alkali Flat Trail. This trail gets you into the heart of the sand where you hike up dunes, walk along ridges and down across exposed areas of the vegetated hardened gypsum lake bed. 

There are wands in the sand to keep you on track, so it is virtually impossible to get lost. But in case you do, there is cell coverage. This was one of our best hikes of the year, and one I’d do again in a heartbeat.  

We left most people in the first quarter-mile and had the dunes to ourselves. There are no interpretive panels, just the opportunity to explore the sand, listen to the silence, share the space with horned larks, watch the weather against the surrounding mountains and experience the solitude of being in the middle of thousands of acres of moving white sands. 

Editor's note: Jim Stratton long served as the Alaska regional director for the National Parks Conservation Association. For more of his stories, check out his blog.