Outings: White Sands National Monument

Flying Saucers

Not far from where I stand, brightly colored discs glide over the undulating dunes of White Sands National Monument. The pilots of these hovercraft make high-pitched squeals that I interpret as sheer joy. This is hardly a UFO sighting, but rather a group of kids dune-sledding, an activity offered year-round at White Sands, which is about 20 miles southwest of Alamogordo on U.S. 70, and where January afternoons average 56 degrees.

No sled? No problem. The gift shop at the Visitor Center sells new and used saucer sleds for $14.50 and $10, respectively. Save your receipt—the shop’s buy-back program will put a portion of your payment back in your pocket. And don’t forget to spend 75¢ on wax to lube the sled’s underside for a smoother, faster ride.

For my father’s 79th birthday, I took him and my stepmom sledding on the dunes, which earned him the title of Cool Dad among my friends. He agreed it was probably not the smartest decision, but he joined in anyway. Dune-sledding is not without risk, but he walked away without a scratch. My stepmom, on the other hand, took a tumble and knocked herself silly, suffering a cut on her nose and leaving spots of red on the snow-white gypsum sand.

It turns out she wasn’t balanced properly. “You have to be right in the middle of the disk, with your bottom close to the top,” explains Jessica Terrazas of Alamogordo, who often brings her family for a full day on the dunes, complete with plenty of food and drink, a portable barbecue grill, a volleyball net, and, of course, sleds.

To find the best slopes, Terrazas suggests parking at the end of Dunes Drive, then hiking farther into the park, where the highest dunes are found. “Oh my gosh, they are so high, but it is so much fun,” she says. “Just make sure you stick a flag or some other marker in the sand by your car so you can find it later.”

Monument entrance fee: $3 adults, children under 15 free; (575) 679-2599, www.nps.gov/whsa—Laura Watilo Blake