Hiking in New Mexico

Start with a trail, then plan for the terrain, route markers, water and weather that shape the day.

A day among the dunes

Wind-rippled white sand and dune grass beneath clouds at White Sands National Park — Dune grass and sand ripples at White Sands Hiroooooo · Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

Hiking

Alkali Flat Trail

Tularosa Basin

Prepare for the strenuous five-mile out-and-back Alkali Flat Trail at White Sands. Check the current route, red markers, water needs, heat and Dunes Drive access.

Access & planning

Distance: 5 miles out and back
Difficulty: Strenuous
Allow: About 3 hours; allow extra time

Read the guide

Check the trail, then the travel day

Use the current land manager’s route description and alerts. Our official resources directory brings together road conditions, weather and park access checks.

Open the planning resources

Sources & photo credits

Official visitor information: Current NPS trail description, Hiking safety, Trail choices, Dunes Drive hours, Road closures.

Photography via Wikimedia Commons. Images resized and cropped for layout; individual credits and reuse licenses are listed below.

View image sources & credits

Dune grass and sand ripples at White Sands, by Hiroooooo, CC BY-SA 4.0, resized and re-encoded as WebP, via Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 4.0 reuse terms.