Sand sledding and barefoot hiking: what surprises White Sands National Park

There is a place in New Mexico where you can feel like you are on another planet. You can walk barefoot and sled there at any time of the year. Welcome to the national park White Sands, writes USA Today.

Photo: Shutterstock

Until 2019, White Sands Park had the status of a national monument. The world's largest gypsum dune field is located here. Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral that is used in building materials, for example, as part of plaster. The dune field, covering an area of ​​more than 712 square kilometers, was once under the waters of Lake Otero, an area of ​​more than 4 thousand square kilometers. The lake dried up 10 thousand years ago. Cycles of evaporation and wind erosion have turned the dry ancient lake bed into dunes.

Now people can walk among huge soft pristine white dunes that stretch to the horizon. You can slide down the slopes of the dunes on plastic sleds, which are sold at the local gift shop. Of course, you can hike and camp in the desert here.

“This place really makes you feel like you're on another planet,” said Brian Powers, public relations manager for White Sands National Park.

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What makes the national park unique? White Sands

“No matter the time of day or night, the park is beautiful,” said Marie Sauter, park superintendent. – There are magnificent sunrises and sunsets here. At night you can admire the starry sky. And, of course, the play of light and shadows on the white dunes is simply breathtaking. It's incredibly beautiful."

Which part of the park is the most popular?

In addition to picturesque views, the park also contains traces of human activity that date back 23 thousand years. Here you can see not only human footprints, but also the paw prints of saber-tooth tigers and giant mammoths dating back to the Pleistocene era. These footprints, preserved in plaster, are the largest collection of fossilized Ice Age prints in the world. “It’s just breathtaking,” said Marie Sauter.

How much does it cost to enter the park?

An entry ticket for one vehicle costs $25.

Is it possible to just drive through the park?

Starting from the visitor center is Dune Drive, a 12-kilometre scenic drive through the park and the only route through White Sands. The first 7 kilometers of the highway are paved, but the last section is a compacted gypsum road with potholes.

Is it possible to walk barefoot in a national park? White Sands

Yes, here you can not only sled, but also walk barefoot, but you need to choose the right time and place, explained Brian Powers. For example, on inland dunes, where there is more vegetation, thorny plants can get under your feet. As the weather gets warmer, the top layer of sand dries out, but because the gypsum reflects the sun's heat, it doesn't get as hot as beach sand. Mary Sauter often wears socks to prevent the tops of her feet from getting sunburned.

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What films were filmed in White Sands

White Sands National Park has been the setting for several famous films, starting with King Solomon's Mines in 1950. In 1968, the western "Hold 'Em Up" was filmed here, and in 1991, the crime drama "White Sands" starring Samuel L. Jackson and Willem Dafoe was filmed here.

The sci-fi action films “Transformers” and “Transformers 2” were also filmed at the White Sands Visitor Center. In 2009, scenes from the film “The Book of Eli” with Denzel Washington and Mila Kunis were filmed here. To film the desert scenes set in the Middle East, actors George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Kevin Spacey and Jeff Bridges, who played in the movie "Crazy Special Forces", also came to White Sands National Park.

Indigenous people of the park White Sands

The park has official partnerships with dozens of Native American tribes and nations throughout the Southwest, but Mary Sauter notes that there may be other peoples with historical ties to the land, such as those living in northern Mexico. “Current political boundaries simply did not exist in ancient times,” she said. The park is working with several tribes and nations to study ancient human footprints preserved in White Sands. “These are the footprints of their ancestors,” Sauter added.

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