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Always Packed for Adventure!

It's the destination and the journey.

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November 2020 Road Trip: White Sands National Park

Our friend’s Dan and Meg suggested that we visit White Sands National Park on our road trip through New Mexico. We arrived shortly before sunset and paid our 25.00 entrance fee. The fee was valid for seven days, but we only had an hour. That said, we both felt that it was worth the stop. Even though our visit was brief, the park was magnificent and giving money to the national parks is a good cause.

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At first, the park didn’t seem like much. We had to drive about ten minutes into the park to see the huge gypsum dunes and to truly appreciate the beauty of White Sands National Park.

It was a quiet afternoon, but we did see a few families picnicking and using plastic sleds to slide down the dunes. I wish we had brought a sled! We walked around and took pictures as the sun was setting, which provided spectacular shots of the sun streaking through the clouds.

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White Sands National Park is a worthy detour if you’re driving through New Mexico. The sand is super fine, powder like grains and it glitters in the light. It makes everything glow. I would love to experience the park in the summer on a blue sky day. Unfortunately, it really isn’t close to many other sites that we are likely to visit in the future, but I’m happy that we were able to experience it.

After leaving the park we caught this fiery sunset, such a contrast to the pale sand.

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tags: White Sands National Park, Things to do in New Mexico, White Sands national Park New Mexico, New Mexico National Parks, Gypsum Sand, What is White Sands national Park Made From, Price for White Sands National park, Supporting the National Parks, New Mexico Sunset, New Mexico Road Trip, New Mexico Road Trip 2020, Covid Road Trip, Road Trip During pandemic, White Sands National Park Sunset, White Sands National Park in Fall, White Sands National Park in November, Road Trip November 2020, Fees of America's National Parks, Sledding at White Sands National Park, Pictures White Sands National Park, Foot Prints in Sand, Visiting Am, Visiting America's national Parks, Traveling in 2020, Our Trip to New Mexico
categories: Visit
Tuesday 12.22.20
Posted by Karen Lea Germain
 

November 2020 Road Trip: The Thing

I brake for roadside attractions and perhaps one of the most iconic roadside attraction in the United States is Arizona’s “The Thing.” I was thrilled to realize that we would encounter “The Thing” on our November road trip through Arizona.

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I’m lucky to have a husband who is willing to support my roadside attraction obsession. Not just willing, but he shelled out ten dollars and diverted from our tight schedule for us to experience this tourist trap.

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Apparently, “The Thing” has had a recent upgrade. According to TripAdvisor it is a much bigger experience and worth the stop. We had low expectations, but it is quite a large attraction. We stopped for about twenty minutes, but we could have easily spent an hour. The exhibit spans several rooms and weaves history and science, with conspiracy theories involving aliens and dinosaurs.

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I loved the little alien carvings that were scattered through the exhibit. They look like they were inspired by drawings of a preschooler.

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The exhibit never really states if they believe in all of the conspiracies, they just use the phrase “What If.” Personally, I think it’s all ridiculous and in good fun, but I can imagine some people taking it seriously. It’s a bit timely to tour an attraction based on conspiracy theories, when conspiracy has dominated our life in 2020. Kind of scary actually.

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Finally, we reached “The Thing”…a mummified…well, a mummified thing.

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Admittedly, the whole dinosaur/alien/conspiracy added a lot to my enjoyment of “The Thing.” If you’re driving through the Arizona desert you must stop. It is a quintessential part of the American road trip experience!




tags: The Thing, What is The Thing, The Thing New Mexico, American Road Trip Stops, American Roadside Attractions, The Thing vs. Dinosaurs, Conspiracy Theories About Dinosaus, Conspiracy Theories about Elvis, Conspiracy Theories about Apollo Moon Landing, Have Aliens Always Been Here, Aliens in the United States, How Much to Visit The Thing, Attractions in New Mexico, Thing to see in New Mexico, New Mexico Road Trip, Road Trip 2020, Road Trip During Covid, Road Trip During Pandemic, Road Trip During Corona Virus, New Mexico Tips, Aliens Riding Dinosaurs, Alien Technology, Alien Neural Interface Helmet, Conspiracy Theories, Jackalope, Pictures of The thing, I Love Road Side Attractions, Tourist Traps in the United States, The Thing Tourist trap, How Long to see The Thing, Is The Thing Worth It?, New Mexico State Line, Road Trip November 2020, Tripadvisor The thing, The Thing Arizona, Arizona Road Stops, Arizona Attractions, Things to do in Arizona, Arizona Road Trip 2020, What we saw in Arizona
categories: Visit
Thursday 12.17.20
Posted by Karen Lea Germain
 

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