FOOTSTEPS IN THE SNOW? NO, IT'S SAND, WHITE SANDS!
White Sands National
Monument is located
off Hwy 70 between
Los Cruces and
Alamogordo, New
Mexico, in the
Tularosa Basin.
It is 275 squaremiles of gypsum
sand dunes. The
brilliant dunes
are ever changing:
growing, cresting,
slumping, always
advancing. There are
only a few species
of plants, but
several types of
small animals have
evolved a white
coloration that
camouflages them in
sand.
Most animals live
underground in burrows
during the heat of
the day and emerge
at night. Tracks of
rodents, rabbits,
foxes, coyotes,
porcupines and other
nocturnal animals
have been seen. We
saw many tracks but
no animals. There
were a few flowering
plants.
There is an entrance fee, but admission is free to Golden Age Passport members.
We grew up in Minnesota where sliding or sledding in the snow was and still is common. Here we saw children sledding in the sand. Same round saucers kids use everywhere. Their smiling faces and gleeful laughter made it clear that sand is as much fun as snow...and so much warmer.
