7 Things You Must Know Before Visiting White Sands National Park

Visiting White Sands National Park in southern New Mexico is a dream.

The sun hangs low, staining the sky orange. It’s a milky hue, pale and soft like a watercolor painting. The ground is flat. Pillows of bluestems lean on a duvet cover of white sand.

Located near Alamogordo, White Sands National Park is an otherworldly picture just north of the Mexico border. It’s one of those places that feels completely alien – strangely uniform and clinically white – like a backdrop from Men In Black. But it’s also (hands-down) one of the most beautiful places in the United States.

Today, I’ll be spilling the tea on seven things I wish I knew before visiting White Sands National Park (because y’all, I’m the queen of how not to travel).

Know That White Sands Is Slightly “Out Of The Way”

White Sands is the most visited national park in New Mexico, but it’s also quite a detour from most big-ticket New Mexican destinations: Taos, Santa Fe, and Albuquerque.

Right now, sand glimmers like fairytale lights hung tight over 275 miles of south-central New Mexico.

Gypsum is a common mineral, but it’s also a soluble one. Like salt, gypsum disappears in water and mixes easily. When sheets of rain hit mountain slopes, water slides down, bringing (now dissolved) gypsum along for the ride.

In New Mexico, the Tularosa Basin trapped water. Droplets dried up. And the gypsum, after freezing and thawing [source], became small and gritty like sand. Today, the area is a snow-like sandfield, several millennia old.

WHERE TO STAY	DRIVE TIME (TO WHITE SANDS)	HOTEL RECOMMENDATION
Alamogordo	20 minutes	Hampton Inn Alamogordo (check price on Expedia)
Albuquerque	3-4 hours	Hotel Parq Central (check price on Expedia)
Las Cruces	50 minutes	Hotel Encanto De Las Cruces (check price on Expedia)
Truth Or Consequences	2 hours	Sierra Grande Lodge & Spa (check price on Expedia)
Ruidoso	1 hour	Whispering Pines Cabins (check price on Expedia)

Know That Your Pass For Visiting White Sands Lasts A Week

Tickets cost $25 per vehicle and your pass lasts a week.

White Sands National Park is open year-round (with the exception of Christmas) from 7 AM to sunset. The Visitor Center is your first point of entry. The center usually closes around 5 PM, but late summer, it extends its timings to 6 PM.

Set in a Pueblo-Revival style building, the museum is part gift shop and part information booth. From the 17-minute orientation film, A Land In Motion, to the native plant garden out front, the visitor center is all resources.

Know That The Park Is Sometimes Closed For Missile Testing

“I don’t think we’re in the right place,” I say, my nose pressed against the car window. The land skating by is flat and dry, a pale, whiteless yellow.

I notice a small sign in the distance.

Then, my heart drops to the ground with a thud. Panic swells up in my throat.

oh my goodness, Anshula. what did you do? this can’t be happening. this isn’t right. is it?

I entered the route for White Sands Missile Range instead of White Sands National Park.

But y’all, I over-panicked. White Sands Missile Range is not as scary as it sounds.

Today, White Sands Missile Range is the biggest open-air test range in the U.S. Department Of Defense. It’s also a historic area with an on-site museum.

White Sands Missile Range neighbors White Sands National Park.

So, some days (during weapons tests), the National Park closes for up to three hours. U.S. Highway 70 (between White Sands and Las Cruces) is blocked off. And following Dunes Drive, the scenic 8-mile road splitting White Sands, is prohibited.

I highly recommend calling White Sands National Park (phone number: 575-479-6124) to find out about expected closures.

Know That There Are Five Trails You Can Hike On Whilst Visiting White Sands

There are five trails at White Sands National Park.

The trails vary in difficulty – easier in the cool, rougher in the heat. White Sands National Park, although shaped into curves by dunes, is vastly unshaded. At peak temperatures, the park is scorching.

My favorite trail is the Interdune Boardwalk, a moderately trafficked 0.4-mile wheelchair-accessible path. With a bit of flora and fauna flushing the gypsum corridor, the boardwalk is an easy introduction to the depth of White Sands.

Alkali Flat Trail is also extremely rewarding, but it’s a tough one (don’t be fooled by the name).

Visiting White Sands National Park Trail Tips:

• Read the official safety guide. It’s short and jam-packed with important know-before-you-go information. I highly recommend it if you are planning on attempting some of the tougher hikes.
• Don’t go off the trails. It’s really tempting, I know. Hiking in White Sands is like meeting a Siren. The lure is in the gentleness and beauty of the landscape. But getting lost is an easy feat. Wind erases footprints dropped in the sands of time.
• Hike in cooler weather. If you can, plan to hike in cooler weather (early June mornings). The weather was crisp and cheery. And New Mexico’s storms are few and far between (October to May is dust storm season, July through September is monsoon season).
• Full Moon Hike: White Sands National Park offers a full moon hike once a month. You can find out more details here.

Know That There’s Wildlife

While tracing Dunes Drive, I wonder if the only animals in White Sands National Park are the visitors (myself included).

The land looks starkly uninhabited. But as I sit down on a clear lot of gypsum, I notice something moving beside me – a fleshy eight-legged creature with a head like an old fingernail and a tail like a string of larvae.

The scorpion acknowledges me by crawling towards my foot. I acknowledge it by running down the dune, arms flailing.

*sigh*

This was my first (albeit embarrassing) encounter with White Sands National Park wildlife. And, it was far from my last. During the course of my trip, I saw:

• a Kit Fox
• a few Jackrabbits
• a Darkling Beetle
• a Barn Swallow
• a Red-Tailed Hawk
• a Roadrunner
• a Bleached Earless Lizard

Know That You Can Go Sledding In White Sands

Sledding at White Sand National Park is a popular activity. You can purchase plastic snow saucers at the gift shop (by the Visitor Center) or you can bring your own.

The sleds sold on-site are roughly $25 new during summer sledding season. The Walmart in Las Cruces and the Albertsons in Alamogordo sometimes stock cheaper sleds.

You’ll still need to purchase a special wax from the gift shop though ($3). Gypsum isn’t as soft as snow so the ride isn’t smooth (or fun) unless you wax the underside of the sled to reduce friction.

Know That The Sunsets Are Unbelievably Pretty

If you can, make room in your trip schedule for one of White Sands National Park’s free, ranger-guided (no reservation needed) sunset tours offered Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.

The sunset at White Sands National Park is gentle. It’s a soft, soft orange laced with candy-coated pink.

It’s not faded. It’s not washed out. It feels unreal – like a dream.

But I guess, visiting White Sands National Park always feels like this – like a dream.

Did you enjoy this guide to visiting White Sands National Park? Have you ever visited White Sands National Park? Let me know in the comments below! As always, I love hearing from you.