Mother Nature's fingerprint at White Sands National Park. The delicate lines on the dunes at dawn are a mesmerizing reminder of the ever-changing desert landscape. Witnessing the hues in the sand transition to warm to cool colors at dusk, and reverse again at dawn, was a big factor to decide to camp in the park. And it was worth every ounce of sand I discovered in the tent and backpack thereafter.
White Sands National Park
NM USA
A National Parks Journey - Virgin Islands National Park
Covid had impacted all our lives, and living in close confines with my partner for an entire year without the relief of social life and travel was proving to be tough. The cold and gloomy winter of Seattle didn't help either: it had multiplied the stresses of being together. This park, and the islands where the Park was nestled in, was meant to be an escape from reality from the bleak weather. Thankfully, it lived up to its expectations.
Virgin islands are not a hard place to get to as there are plenty of flights that ply to these Caribbean US territories. A short cab and ferry ride from the island of St Thomas lands you in St John, where the Park is actually located. But getting around the Park, especially to the remote reaches on the eastern side of the island, necessitated renting one of the colorful Jeeps available by the ferry terminal. And that gave me the freedom to explore various trails and relax by the white sand beaches normally not visited by day trippers from St Thomas, the commercial hub of Virgin Islands.
And while sailing remains the best way to explore these territories, staying in and exploring the island of St John by road works was a welcome substitute for the solo traveler.
Virgin Islands National Park
USVI
A National Parks Journey - White Sands National Park
On my feed, I have often waxed poetry about White Sands, which I had first visited when it was still a National Monument. Sheer white sand dunes of the type found in White Sands National Park take on otherworldly hues at the magic hours of sunrise and sunset. And since the park is open only from an hour after sunrise to an hour before sunset, the only way to experience the magic hour is to camp between the dunes. Doing so requires contending with freezing temperatures and billowing winds, desert bugs and wildlife, and lack of any water. But the reward is the ability to shoot at the golden hours.
After grabbing dinner, it is time to take up the camera and shoot the dunes before night sets in. And while the evening light brings on yellow, and later pink hues on the sand, I prefer shooting the dunes before sunrise when the dunes take on a blue tone reflecting the deep blue desert sky of New Mexico. It also helps that the winds blowing through the night ensure that the fresh ripples in the sand constitutes a new canvas ready for another day of painting by the light.
Even though I have been there twice, this place has enraptured my heart so much that I would never refuse another night of camping in the dunes.
White Sands National Park
NM USA
Black and White Sands
A late afternoon dust-storm picks up fine sand from the dunes of White Sands National Park. This National Park, tucked within two mountain ranges of New Mexico, hosts the largest sand dunes made of gypsum sand that looks like snow, but flows like salt. Finer than regular sand, frequent windstorms easily pick up the pearl white dunes, erasing footprints of days past, leaving being sharp ripples that move every single day.
Due to the constantly shifting dunes, there are no fixed trails here, except for a series of markers for directional guidance. And even though they are small, it is easy to wander and get lost amidst the vast expanse of the dunes. But that shouldn't deter you from making a visit to this unique park in the desert southwest.
White Sands National Park
NM USA
The Women of my Life
There have been many incredible women who have been part of my life, women who have struggled and succeeded against many odds. But perhaps one person I continue to admire every single day is my partner, whether it be her zest for life, her curiosity to travel, her openness to new adventures, or her passion for social causes. Every single day, I get to learn new stories about her past, and the challenges she has faced in getting to where she is today.
This is dedicated to her tenacity to see and set the world right, and to the other women who have endeavored to do so in their own way.
White Sands National Park
NM USA
Of Sandstorms and Windy sunsets
One of the country's newest National Parks has something going for it that no other place on this planet can lay a claim on - the largest gypsum sand basin. And that lends this place a surrealism like no other. While most visitors only spend the daylight hours here, the time for photography in this place when the sun crests below the San Andres mountains, and the predawn hours when everything lays still.
At sunset, in the shadow of the mountains, the white sands take on an unnatural blue hue, which, combined with strong winds at dusk, lend an ethereal soft glow to the undulating striations on the dunes. And on those rare occasions, all these happen with a sky lighting up for sunset, like in this scene above.
This park holds within it many such unique photographic opportunities, and I really do hope I can get back there, if only to spend one more night at this amazing National Park
White Sands National Park
NM USA
Azure Crystals
I find the ripples of the sand dunes quite fascinating: the patterns are ever so numerous, but often gets lost in the vastness of the dunes and the angle of light. But early in the morning, even the tiniest of lines on the sand becomes patterns onto themselves. That is what I seek out every time I am in the dunes.
An early morning in February found me amidst the dunes of White Sands National Park. I was hunting to find the right location where the lines were highlighted by the rising sun. In the gentle pre-dawn light under the deep-blue morning sky, the white sand took on an ethereal hue, slowly changing through different shades of blue as the sun rose up. I knelt down to capture the lines of shadow and light stretching in front of me.
White Sands National Park
NM USA
Light on the Sands
Sunset on the sand dunes can be special. Sunset on white sand dunes with a gusting windstorm is even more.
Just before the pandemic lockdown shut all travel, I had ventured out to White Sands National Monument. My previous trip had been more than 9 years prior, and I had longingly looked forward to this trip. I had planned on camping in the sand dunes as I knew the landscape would turn spectacular at sunset and sunrise.
As luck would have it, the forecast called for gusts of winds up to 20mph which I knew would make for a poor camping experience with sand everywhere. But there was a silver-lining to this: a layer of undisturbed white sand stretching for miles and lending to unique compositions that I would find nowhere else.
What I eventually witnessed as I scrambled from site to site, hunting for new compositions, was beyond extraordinaire. I lucked out with the right combination of weather, light and location in this unique corner of New Mexico.
White Sands National Monument
NM USA
Heart of the Dunes
Walking into the heart of the dunes sounded appealing at the visitor center when I first entered one of the newest National Parks. But at the trailhead, with winds gusting upwards of 20 miles per hour, I had to rethink my decision, since all I could see in front of me was a wall of white blasting down my face.
I had visited White Sands National Park when it was still a National Monument and had hiked down the same trail to the heart of the sands. But back then, it was a calm balmy day, with a gentle breeze and mild temperatures. Quite unlike today.
I decided to go on, climbing over dune after endless white dunes, with nary a sign of life, all while getting sandblasted by pure white gypsum sand. I couldn't even turn back as my footprints were getting erased as fast as I created them. The only thing leading me own were the odd markers sticking above the ever shifting sand dunes.
I survived, but was coated in sand from head to toe. And my camera fared no better. But at least it continued to take photos.
White Sands National Park
NM USA
The Singing Sands
From the distance, it just appeared as a mass of white in a scorched desert environment. Plants seem to have shied away from this natural bowl between two mountain ranges where this mass lay. And as I got closer, the discernible shape of dunes emerged out of this mass of white.
White Sands was a surreal place, where the pure white gypsum sand place tricks with your mind: it looked like snow, behaved like sand, and flowed like salt, and yet, it had all the characteristics of a regular sand dune. And when the winds picked up and whipped into a frenzy, the dust storm of white sand was like nothing else.
I am excited to be returning back to this amazing place. And while it was a National Monument then, it has since been upgraded to a National Park status. Hopefully that brings more attention to this unique corner of New Mexico
White Sands National Park
NM USA