kayaking on Loch Leven near Glencoe, Scotland, 2018

kayaking on Loch Leven near Glencoe, Scotland, 2018

Thursday, June 9, 2011

White Sands National Monument

Big Bend boasts rocky majestic peaks and incredible starry nights. Guadalupe Mountains hold lush canyons and hidden oases. Carlsbad Caverns reveal an underground treasure trove. But one of the coolest places we went on this vacation was White Sands National Monument.

Through geological and weather wonders, 275 square miles of granulated gypsum fill a mountain-ringed basin, like a giant sandbox, the wind constantly blowing and building dunes on this ever-changing un-earthly landscape. Like a North American Galapagos Islands, White Sands is home to some creatures and plants that live nowhere else on earth.

We slid down the dunes on saucer-shaped sleds.




That’s Andrew and Bob walking in the distance. The sand is so VAST.


I love this shot . . . the sand and dunes, the mountains in the background, storms clouds above. It did rain some that afternoon.


New Mexico’s state flower – the Soap Tree Yucca


Quite by happenstance, we came upon a foursome who asked if we’d mind taking their photo together. We obliged, and then they offered to take our photo. Seems a couple of them were professional photographers, so they got a few fun shots of us.



At the end of the day, we took a ranger-led “sunset stroll.”

2 comments:

Rita Scheidt said...

Love these pics. My son did lots of research and spent time at White Sands - wrote papers etc. Since his travels and research about deserts, I am totally fascinated. What a neat family you have!

Common Household Mom said...

Sledding without jackets or snowpants! I hope I get to take my kids there someday. That looks incredible, and yes, other-worldly.