15. White Sands National Park

First made a national monument in 1933. Then in 1942 it became neighbors with the military and still to this day shuts down on occasion due to military tests. The First atomic bomb was tested at Trinity Site, just 60 miles north of the monument in 1945. How wild is that? Finally on December 20th of 2019 White Sands National Monument was redesignation White Sands National Park, making it the 62nd national park in the US National Park System

The great wave-like dunes cover 275 square miles of desert, making White Sands the world's largest gypsum dune field.

Perhaps you're wondering what gypsum is like I was. Well, Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral compound that is composed of hydrated calcium sulfate. Since it is water soluble, gypsum usually does not occur in the form of sand. However, because of the dry hot weather conditions at White Sands, it’s helped create the large expanse of gypsum sand dunes seen here. Apparently Gypsum is mined at sites around the world and used in drywall, fertilizer, plaster, and shampoo but the dunefield in the park is of course protected. Though the dunes are all called white sands, gypsum isn’t actually sand and it’s not really white but clear. The tiny grains sparkle and create a bright reflection that’s almost unreal!

You can hike and see both the San Andres Mountains and Sacramento Mountains from the dunes and Sand sledding is a big activity there! Yup you heard that right Sand Sledding. Okay so not quite like that. But where else do you find sledding on the things to do in a national park?

It’s always recommended to come early or late in the day as the mid afternoon sun gets extremely hot. But the gypsum, unlike sand, does stay cool on the feet.

White Sands has also been the filming location for multiple music videos and movies like independence day and transformers.. Due to its rare views that might make you feel like you're on another planet.

Something else I found interesting is the area is now home to a wild herd of African oryx. That’s something you won’t see in most of the US. Native to the Kalahari Desert in East Africa, just under 100 of these eye-catching antelopes were brought into the area in the early 1970s for big game hunting. But it kind of backfired and oryx have thrived in the state of New Mexico with few natural predators Today, their numbers are over 3,000. The park had to build a fence to keep them out as they now pose a risk to the native ecosystem. 

Well, that's one more park down. Have you been here? Or is it on your bucket list?