Little grains of shimmering sand are moving under my bare feet as I walk further into the gypsum dune fields. The blazing sun above my head is burning my skin, but the little gypsum grains stay chilled. The only thing the sun does to them is making them look whiter. The whitestest of all sands.
One of the most breathtaking places I've ever walked in my life.
Now, I am rolling down the dunes and the dunes are rolling under me...
“While the wind piles the sand grains into dunes, the dunes move forward under the force of gravity. As the leading edge of the dune gets steeper, gravity pulls an avalanche of sand down the slipface, moving the dune forward." (White Sands National Park Website)
It's getting very windy.
I am rolling down the dunes, the dunes roll under me and their dusty breath is all around me...
“The wind moves small sand grains by bouncing them along the surface in a process called "saltation." Saltating sand grains create a beautiful pattern of ripples on the dune surface. Larger sand grains are struck by saltating grains and slowly roll forward, a process known as "surface creep." (White Sands National Park Website)
Nature at its best.
Isn't it amazing how much movement is there when it seems from far away that nothing is moving?
Perspective matters.
Unfortunately, just a few miles away, the White Sands Missile Range is bringing darkness to this absolute natural brightness...
