White Sands

After the long ride to Las Cruces, I decided to spend the following day at White Sands National Monument, which
sits in the Tularosa Basin, forty miles to the east.

It is a surreal, magical, and misleadingly named place,

as the eponymous white dunes are made not of silica, but gypsum,

a soft mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate. Gypsum from the quarries of Montmartre, Paris has long 

furnished burnt gypsum, otherwise known as plaster of Paris. However, because it is water-soluble, it is almost 

never found in the form of sand. White Sands National Monument is a stunningly beautiful exception to the rule.

Not all of the monument is devoid of life, as evidenced by the presence of this Yucca Elata.

In addition to plant life, several animals, including fox, porcupine, and oryx, make their home in the dunes.

The tracks above belong to a Roadrunner, 

while these were made by a Bleached Earless Lizard.

After riding around the park for a while,

I parked Brünhilde and set off to make some tracks of my own.

I found this handsome dune,

which afforded a nice view of the Organ mountains to the west.

The perfect spot for a cup of coffee and a Djarum.

In addition to its elevated status as a National Monument, White Sands is also doubles as a missile range. Note
the contrails from B-2 bombers in the image below.

As the sun set, the clouds turned purple, and the sand took on a pinkish hue,

making a beautiful backdrop for this photo of my lovely girl.