Alamogordo, NM

White Sands National Monument 

Glo @ White Sands N.M.

We added yet another National Monument/Park to our list of places we've been.  White Sands is unique in that it is located in the middle of the desert.  Having grown up on at the beach, when we saw the sand we thought no biggy, but we kept expecting to see a body of water somewhere.  The sand is so soft, it feels like talcum powder.

The White Sands National Monument is about 16 miles southwest of Alamogordo and is comprised of 275 square miles of white sand dunes composed of gypsum crystals.  It is the largest gypsum dune field in the world.

White Sands from a distance.

T @ White Sands

Sands so bright it's almost blinding.  

Pistachio Tree Ranch & Winery

We had a great afternoon at the Pistachio ranch.  We toured the tree farm and learned about how Pistachio's are grown and harvested.  It takes both a male and female tree to produce pistachios.  The ranch has 1 male for every 18 females.  The amazing thing is that when it's time to harvest, they shake the tree and in 1 minute they have 30 pounds of pistachios.  The Pistachio tree is one of the oldest known to man.

Did you catch the fact that it is also a winery.  Of course we tasted wine.  T says, "Any place that offers free wine tasting is never free."  I always buy wine.  LOL  This time was no different. They had a pistachio flavored Chardonnay and a Chocolate Cabernet.  Can't wait to share them.

Toy Train Depot

After the pistachios and wine we visited the Toy Train.  T loved it.  Maybe I've found a hobby for him! Who knows?

The Toy Train Depot is a toy store and railway museum, featuring scale models of train locomotives and passenger and freight cars, in Alamogordo, New Mexico.  There are over 1200 feet of model railroad track with running trains and hundreds of trains with all the different gauges from HO to Z.

Steam Engine toy train