White Sands Make For Stark Contrasts In Nature & Time

Contrasting colors influence my world, my hobbies, and my writing in many ways

White Sands National Park offers many kinds of contrasts, but the contrast of colors is stunning. © Carol Labuzzetta, 2020.

When I read Globetrotter’s Challenge for this month, our trip to White Sands National Park instantly sprang to mind. It was February 2020, just before the COVID pandemic’s arrival of shutdowns, when we drove to the then-newest National Park. We had chosen to visit Santa Fe, New Mexico, for a week and, during that time, took a day trip to White Sands National Park.

White Sands had just been redesignated as a National Park from its previous status as a National Monument (1933). In fact, it was so new that the signage had not yet changed. White Sands became a National Park in December of 2019, and we were there in February of 2020.

White Sands Visitor Center. Old Signage. © Carol Labuzzetta, 2020.

Interestingly, a change in designation from National Monument to National Park historically led to increased visitation and, therefore, more income for the park and nearby communities. It has been noted, in the link at the end, that National Parks draw more overnight visitors, leading to an economic boost for businesses in and adjacent to the park.