White Sands National Monument

White Sands National Monument lies appx. 30 miles northeast of the missile range. It is quite a wonderful place; a vast beach without the water. There is a nice and informative little visitor center at the entrance, then one can drive the 8-mile loop into the white sand dunes.

The sand is made of the crystal gypsum, which is washed down from the mountains by rain and streams. The gypsum was deposited when the mountains were the bottom of an inland ocean, about 250 million years ago. Today the area has no connection to the sea, so the sand just sits there in the basin and lets the wind move it around. There is water there, just below the surface, but it is too heavy on minerals to be drinkable.

All pics here.

"I will show you fear in a handful of dust"


A defiant plant in a sea of sand.


I saw lots of people out in the sands, sliding on plastic bags, playing or just relaxing in the sun. If you have more agility than yours truly, whose daily exercise regiment consists of falling out of a parked car a few times a day, I'm sure you can have fun out here.


The wind was whipping up the sand in places.




It was 99F here, according to my car thermometer.