We’ve been pretty busy driving since we left Oklahoma on April 15th. We stopped at a pretty awesome City Park overnight in Abilene, TX before making our way to New Mexico to visit Carlsbad Caverns National Park for a week, then onto White Sands National Monument in Alamogordo, New Mexico! Last time we visited was in 1992 and were just as in awe of the sand dunes back then!
We had never seen anything like it, the mounds of soft white sand that appear to be deep snow drifts from a distance. Even with an outside temp near 70 degrees, we began to sense a weird chill as we drove into the park almost as if we were entering a winter wonderland. Simply amazing!
The White Sands National Monument is in the northern Chihuahuan Desert in the state of New Mexico.
Known for the dramatic landscape of rare white gypsum sand dunes. The gypsum dune field is the largest of its kind on Earth. White Sands National Monument is a must for anyone’s Bucket List.
The first stop, after arriving at the monument, is a visit to the gift shop where you can rent sleds for sliding down the sand. There’s that winter wonderland theme again :). Of course, you can bring your own sled but we typically don’t carry one in our RV.
Maggie had so much fun running around on leash of course. Horses are also allowed and we noticed a few taking their riders through the dunes.
There are many trails and a driving loop that takes you around the dunes along some incredible views. Bring your camera this is, without a doubt, an incredible photographer’s paradise.
Although we love using our National Park Pass the day we visited White Sands National Monument was during National Park Week. This is a time where entry to the park is free.
Everyone seemed to be having such a great time sledding, horseback riding, picnicking and relaxing on the dunes. It’s awesome the park service provides free entry days to encourage more folks to visit our National Parks and Monuments.
We had a great time here and the weather was perfect. It was awesome that Maggie was able to get out and play in the sand with us. We are sure you will love it just as we did.
Check out our blog post all about the amazing and FREE boondocking location we discovered just down the road from White Sands National Monument.
Below is our photo gallery featuring all the photos we took while visiting White Sands National Monument. Enjoy!
