White Sands National Park: Nature’s Playground

WE FOUND SNOW IN NEW MEXICO!!!! Nah not really, but it is close to the next best thing. This pure White Sands National Park is located about 20 miles from Alamogordo New Mexico and is the perfect place to spend a day. This sand is not your normal sand. It is gypsum! The most unique thing about the gypsum is it is cool to the touch. Our first day visiting the 275 square miles of white sand it was 101 degrees outside. Not only that but it was about 10 AM so the sun had plenty of time to beat down on the sand.

When we set foot on the first dune we immediately noticed that it was not hot at all. So, off with the shoes and game on! The sand is so comfortable you wont want to leave. The surface is cool and just a few inches under the top layer it is actually cold! Making it great for hiking, picnics, sledding, or just hanging out.

There is even a nice picnic area that has a covering over the top of the picnic tables. This is perfect if you don’t want to get all sandy but we decided to pack some food and water and take to the dune field. We took a small beach umbrella and some sleds to the kids and made a whole “beach day” on the worlds largest gypsum dune field.

Keep in mind that even though the sand is cool you still are dealing with extreme sunshine. Take sunscreen, salty foods, and plenty of water. While we were visiting we seen a search and rescue team have to go out to assist somebody. It looked like they may have been on a longer hike trail without proper supplies.

Be prepared for change! This area is located next to a military base and a missile range so there is times that it will be closed for testing. While we was visiting there was a portion of the park closed due to a F16 crash within the park. This did not allow us to do one of the hikes we was planning on doing but we are happy that the park is mainly open and we are able to experience the vast majority of White Sands National Park.

Dune Life Nature Trail

This is a little longer hike within the park. It is only a mile loop but it snakes through and over some of the dunes in the park. To complete, it took us about a hour. I think that this is a hike that you can skip unless you just really want to do a hike within the park. Once again you are just walking among the dunes. You can do that pretty much anywhere in the park so there is nothing that is setting this up as a special hike. You are not seeing any special scenery besides what you can see literally anywhere else in the park.

Pay attention to the informational signs that are setup along the trail. They are there to point out what is in front of you. These signs are special because it helps you to learn about the park, environment, and animals within. Unfortunately on this trail these signs are all sun bleached and can no longer be read. So they are completely useless other that helping to assist you on where the trail is. I am not sad that we did the trail, but I would have been fine with skipping this one.

White Sands National Park Playa Trail

This small hike is great for anybody looking to get out of the car and stretch you legs without actually hiking. The trail is only a half mile out and back trail that has minimal elevation gain. The trail is well maintained but it is mainly compacted sand. The playa is a shallow area that will temporary fill with water during the monsoon season. Most of the time it is dry on the surface.

What is unique about the playa is only feet under the dry crusty surface there is a shallow lake. This gives life to frogs, tadpoles, and brine shrimp. Depending on what time of year you come here will determine what kind of playa you get! Our was dry, whitish, and crusty. After some monsoons it will fill with water and be thriving with life. Later in the season you can even see some crystals forming within the playa.

Once again this is a small hike that is worth it if you are wanting to stretch your legs. If you are on limited time within the park then I would skip this hike and go straight to the dunes. Not taking anything away from the hike but it is not the stunning environment that the dunes will give you.

Alamogordo/White Sands KOA Journey

What a nice day at Alamogordo/White Sands KOA Journey. Located in between the Lincoln National Forest and White Sands National Park there is no shade. That’s kind of to be expected for the area. There is not exactly a lot of huge shade trees that can survive the desert climate. At your site you will be greeted with a beautiful brick patio. Completely furnished with patio furniture, a propane grill you can use, a nice patio swing, fire pit, and light post.

 I do not know what it is about this light post that I love so much but having your own patio light that is bright and covers the entire patio is such a nice touch. It has a switch allowing you to turn it on or off depending on what you prefer. With the cool nights you will have here in Alamogordo this patio makes for the perfect dinner spot to hang out and enjoy some much needed reprieve from the heat.

E6 was the site we stayed at and it was level with plenty of space for slide outs. Seriously this is one of the widest spots we have stayed at in a KOA. Your parking pad is rock but you have a nice brick patio to relax on the cooler evenings. Our site was located directly next to the pool and playground. I highly recommend you request E6 if you have kids with you as you can stay at your patio and watch them at the playground.

The only thing I would like to warn you about is the water pressure. It is at a whopping 90 psi. So you MUST use a regulator here. I have a adjustable one that I try to keep pressure around 50-55 but a lot of campers will tell you to keep your pressure around 35-45. That is a small price to pay to have a amazing campground that is located just 20 miles outside White Sands National Park. This is a mere 15-20 minute drive and you are inside the park enjoying the sand.

Caliche’s Frozen Custard

Located right around the corner of the KOA you will find a small frozen custard location called Caliche’s. This place has the perfect treats to cool you off during these 100 degree summer days. Price is very reasonable and service was friendly and fast.

I got the Green Chili Sundae and holy crap was this a blend of flavors. You get super sweet frozen vanilla yogurt that is coated in a green chili relish. It also comes with your choice of nuts to top it with, I chose to go with Pecans. What this blend gives you is a balance of sweet, spicy, and salty all at once. Not to mention where else are you going to get such a unique ice cream!!

575 Brewing Co

If you are looking for a cold drink and a even colder seating area find the hottest day on your trip and head over to 575 Brewing Co. They have got so many different brews I had to get 2 flights to try them all. You can expect to see anything from Maple Scottish Ale, Black Cherry Stout, Reds, Blueberry Blonde, Blood Orange Ale, and Tangerine Ale. They do offer some frozen cocktail drinks and ciders that are not made by them but sold by them.

If you are looking for a food option they do offer simple foods that include a giant pretzel, Notch board, and chips and salsa. While we was visiting they also had a food truck on site that offered burritos and nachos. We wanted a little something to eat so we got the giant soft pretzel with beer cheese to dip. I am a absolute lover of beer cheese soup.

This did not disappoint as it ranked in the top 3 best beer cheese soup that I have ever had. The pretzel is huge as well, all 4 of us ate on it and there was plenty to go around. If you do not like beer cheese the pretzel comes with mustard and honey mustard as a standard. We also got the Nosh plate that featured Genoa salami, pepperoni, black forest ham, muenster, pepper jack, olives, cornichons, craisins, pistachios, honey-toasted pecans, pretzels, crackers, cream cheese, and mild chili jam. It was the perfect little lunch for the four of us.

I do think you need to make sure you get there early. We got there 30 minutes after it opened and the only seating was outside on the covered patio. While that was largely due to them having a music bingo getting ready to start it seems that this is a popular place that always have a event going on. One last thing I wanted to share was they are a family friendly establishment. They had root beer for the kids and was very friendly. There was multiple families that had their children with them. This is something I look for when going to a brewery because you just never know what you are going to get.