Page 549 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - USA

NE W MEXIC O  547

Soaptree yucca plant in the White Sands National Monument
300 sq miles (800 sq km). Gypsum Range, a military testing site. caves in the side of a sandstone
is a water soluble mineral, rarely For safety, the park and the bluff high above the Gila River.
found as sand. But here, with road leading to it (Hwy 70) may Hunter-gatherers and farmers
no drainage outlet to the sea, close for up to three hours called the Tularosa Mogollon
the sediment washed by the when testing is underway. established their 40-room
rain into the basin becomes The White Sands Missile Range village here in the late
trapped. As the rain evaporates, Museum displays many of the 13th century. The Mimbres
dry lakes form and strong winds missiles tested here, as well Mogollon people, famous for
blow the gypsum up into the as the V-2 rockets used in their abstract black-and-white
vast fields of rippling dunes. World War II. pottery designs on hand-coiled
Visitors can explore White earthenware, also lived in this
Sands by car on the Dunes Drive, area. The cliff dwellers hunted
a 16-mile (26-km) loop. Four ^ Gila Cliff the local wildlife, including
trails lead from points along the Dwellings National whitetail and mule deer.
way, including the wheelchair- They probably farmed the
accessible Interdune Boardwalk. Monument fields alongside the Gila River,
For long-distance trails, carrying Tel (575) 536-9461. Open 8am–5pm growing corn and squash.
water is advisable. Year-round daily. Closed Jan 1, Dec 25. A granary still holds a dessicated
ranger-led walks introduce & ∑ nps.gov/gicl reserve of tiny corn. The ruins
visitors to the dunes’ flora and are accessed by a 1-mile
fauna. Only plants that grow The Gila (pronounced hee-la) (1.6-km) round-trip hike from
quickly enough not to be buried Cliff Dwellings are one of the the footbridge crossing the
survive, such as the hardy soap- most remote archaeological Gila River’s West Fork. Allow
tree yucca. Most of the animals sites in the Southwest, situated 2 hours to navigate the 40-mile
are nocturnal and include foxes, among the piñon, juniper, and (64-km) road to the site from
coyotes, and porcupines. ponderosa evergreens of the Silver City as it winds and
The park is surrounded Gila National Forest. The climbs through the mountains
by the White Sands Missile dwellings occupy five natural and canyons of the forest.

Yucca plants have
been gathered for
centuries and have
many uses: their
fruit can be eaten,
and the roots
make shampoo.

The javelina is a
strange pig-like Golden eagles can
mammal that be seen high in the
The Joshua tree was wanders the sky in daytime as
named by Mormons who Chihuahuan and they hunt for prey
saw the upraised arms of Sonoran Deserts across the Great
Joshua in its branches. in small packs. Basin Desert.

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