Skip to main content

Dunes Drive of White Sands National Park

By


Dunes Drive is an eight-mile connecting road from US Route 70 to the Alkali Flat Trailhead in White Sands National Park. Dunes Drive was constructed following the designation of White Sands National Monument between 1936-1940. The last approximate four miles of Dune Drive are unsurfaced and require traveling over graded gypsum sand. White Sands National Park was designated into law during December 2019.




Part 1; the history of Dunes Drive

White Sands National Park is located in the Tularosa Basin of Dona Ana County and Otero County.  The namesake "White Sands" is the largest gypsum dunefield at in the world at approximately 275 square miles.  White Sands lies at low point in the endorheic Tularosa Basin near Lake Lucero.  The White Sands dunes are thought to have formed 7,000-10,000 years ago due to erosion of water-soluble gypsum from the San Andres Mountains and Sacramento Mountains.  The gypsum dunes of White Sands are typically 30 feet deep but can be as deep as 60 feet.  

White Sands National Monument was designated on January 18, 1933, by President Hebert Hoover.  Construction of the White Sands National Monument visitor facilities, general infrastructure and Dunes Drive would take place during 1936-1940.  The completed Dunes Drive can be seen branching from US Route 70 west of Alamogordo on the 1940 State Farm Insurance Map of New Mexico. 


On June 23, 1988, the White Sands National Monument Historic District was established.  The district comprised of the visitor center and other infrastructure developed during the 1936-1940 era. 



On December 20, 2019, the designation White Sands National Park was signed into law.  The designation of White Sands National Park saw the transfer of land management in the cooperative use boundary from the Army to the National Park Service.  An addition 2,029 acres of protected lands were also added to the newly designated National Park.    



Part 2; a drive on Dunes Drive

US Route 70 passes through the eastern tip of White Sands National Park where Dunes Drive and the visitor center facilities can be accessed.  The marque along US Route 70 still displays "White Sands National Monument" whereas the new vinyl signs now say, "White Sands National Park."




Signage at the visitor still denotes "White Sands National Monument." 


Dunes Drive branches from the visitor center as a paved road and passes through the park entry station.  






Dunes Drive beyond the entrance station first passes the Playa Trail.







The next trail encountered on Dunes Drive is Dunes Life Nature Trail.


Dunes Drive enters the namesake White Sands dunes and next passes the Interdune Boardwalk. 










The Interdune Boardwalk is a short trail which features an easy walk above the gypsum sands between numerous vegetated dunes.  










Dunes Drive beyond the Interdune Boardwalk becomes an unsurfaced roadway.  Traffic is required to travel atop compacted gypsum.  




Dunes Drive next intersects the Backcountry Camping Trail. 








The final leg of Dunes Drive consists of a loop which begins/ends at the Backcountry Camping Trail.  The loop consists of access to numerous picnic areas, dunes used for sledding and the Alkali Flat Trail.










The Alkali Flat Trail is the signature trail of White Sands National Park.  The trail consists of a 5-mile loop of the large dunes of Alkali Flat.  The Alkali Flat Trail is marked by way of orange reassurance markers.  


























Dunes Drive from the Alkali Flat Trail loops back to the Backcountry Camping Trail.  Signage directing traffic back to US Route 70 and the park exit can be found near the Backcountry Camping Trail. 





Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Grand Loop Road of Yellowstone National Park

By
  Grand Loop Road is a 140 mile loop highway which traverses the interior of Yellowstone National Park.  Grand Loop Road connects all of the major attractions and geological features of Yellowstone National Park along with the entrance roads.  Grand Loop Road is a seasonal highway and despite some conjecture never has been part of the US Route System.   Part 1; the history of Grand Loop Road The majority of history pertaining to Grand Loop Road was taken from the below National Park Service article: Historic Roads - Yellowstone National Park (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov) Yellowstone was declared the first National Park of the United States on March 1st, 1872.  The first real highway to access Yellowstone National Park came in 1873 when a tolled facility was constructed from Bozeman, Montana via Yankee Jim Canyon to Mammoth Hot Springs.  Numerous attempts were made to fund construction of roadway infrastructure during the early years of Yellows...
Post a Comment
Read more

The last 1956-63 era California Sign State Route Spade?

By
Along southbound California State Route 170 (the Hollywood Freeway Extension) approaching the Hollywood Freeway/Ventura Freeway interchange a white California State Route 134 Sign State Route Spade can be observed on guide sign.  These white spades were specifically used during the 1956-63 era and have become increasingly rare.  This blog is intended to serve as a brief history of the Sign State Route Spade.  We also ask you as the reader, is this last 1956-63 era Sign State Route Spade or do you know of others?  Part 1; the history of the California Sign State Route Spade Prior to the Sign State Route System, the US Route System and the Auto Trails were the only highways in California signed with reassurance markers.  The creation of the US Route System by the American Association of State Highway Officials during November 1926 brought a system of standardized reassurance shields to major highways in California.  Early efforts to create a Sign State Route ...
Post a Comment
Read more

California State Route 70; the Feather River Highway

By
From 2017 through to early 2019 I drove the majority of the California State Route 70; the Feather River Highway from CA 89 southwest to CA 99. CA 70 is an approximately 178.5 mile state highway which starts at US 395 near the Nevada State Line and travels west through the Feather River Canyon to CA 99.  CA 70 is often referred to as the Feather River Highway" given it's close association with the river.  Historically CA 70 was previously signed as US 40A and CA 24.  The Legislative Routes prior to the 1964 California Highway Renumbering that made up the current route of CA 70 are as follows: -  Legislative Route Number 21 from US 395 westward to Oroville. -  LRN 87 from Oroville south to Marysville. -  LRN 232 from Marysville to the current junction with CA 99.  CA 70 was even dual signed with CA 99 into Sacramento on what was LRN 232 for a time. The change from US 40A/LRN 21/LRN 87/LRN 232 can be seen by comparing the 1963 State Highway Ma...
Post a Comment
Read more