The deserts of White Sands New Mexico may look barren, but they teem with life. If you are there in the heat of day, you will see almost nothing. Maybe a few bugs, if you're lucky. Most of the creatures are hiding in a burrow, to escape the intense heat and sun. As an aside, the animals don't have to burrow very deep, because the gypsum sand stays remarkably cool to the touch! But when night comes, the area becomes far more active. If you arrive at dawn, you can catch a glimpse of the normally-hidden wildlife, even if it's just their tracks in the sand. But you have to arrive early, because they soon get hidden by the wind and multitudes of trudging tourists.

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White Sands reminds me of going skiing. Do you remember how if you wake up early enough, and are among the first few people making your way up the ski lift, you can look down below and see the countless animal tracks of all sizes, forged in the stillness of night, soon to disappear under the myriad of skiers? White Sands National Monument, near Alamogordo, New Mexico, is the same way. The tracks which show up in the sand dunes overnight are just as varied in size as those on the ski slopes, though they tend to range from tiny to medium, instead of small to large. And instead of it being the skiers who will ultimately hide these tracks, here it’s the wind that comes with the scorching desert sun.

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