The day in Alamogordo started with dark skies and rain showers. A visit to the New Mexico Museum of Space History seemed a good place to begin. In the Main Exhibits Building visitors start on the fourth floor and work their way down ramps through themed exhibits – Icons of Exploration, Living and Working in Space, Rockets!, Space Science in New Mexico. Woven throughout the exhibits are photos and brief bios on inductees of the International Space Hall of Fame – a trip through the memory bank for those who grew up in the heyday of manned space flight and exploration. I’m sorry to say that I mostly found the exhibits uninspiring and frequently tacky.

We planned to attend a morning Imax feature but found that the show was sold out. A weekday morning in early April didn’t seem like a time likely to fill. We didn’t count on school bus loads of students on field trips. We did choose a planetarium presentation on what one can see in the night sky over Alamogordo this time of year. The school group that attended the show at the same time we did was extremely attentive and well-behaved.

Our best entertainment of the morning was watching museum volunteers being trained to operate a new human gyroscope. Two teenage girls served as guinea pigs to be twirled, flipped and spun while most of us older folks knew this was not anything we wanted to try. I’m sure this will be a very successful attraction.

Note: The theater complex is considerably downhill from the exhibit building. Allow enough time to relocate.

A visit to Alamogordo wouldn’t be complete without a visit to White Sands National Monument, 15 miles west of the city. First stop is the historic visitor center built in the Pueblo Revival style in the 1930s. An orientation film, exhibits, bookstore and information desk provide an overview of the monument and a schedule of ranger activities. The free ranger-guided Sunset Strolls always holds appeal for me.

Across the courtyard of the visitor center there is a gift shop with a selection of souvenirs, plus Native American jewelry, arts and crafts. A few food items, snacks, ice cream bars and soft drinks are also available. There is no water available beyond the visitor center complex, be sure to be prepared.

The most popular gift shop purchase is plastic saucers for sliding down the dunes. Early in the day there may be some available for rent. If you do purchase saucers you can receive a $5 rebate if you want to turn them in after use. I offered to purchase one for Bob but he declined. It is definitely an enticing activity for many visitors.

An eight-mile scenic drive takes visitors deeper into the gypsum dunes. Numerous pullouts allow parking for an up-close encounter with the fine white sand. Picnic tables are sheltered by wind breaks but locals bring their own umbrellas or shade tarps. A ranger tells us. “On Easter this is everyone’s “go-to”. They come early, set up volleyball nets and stay the day.” Overnight camping or RV parking is not allowed at White Sands except for ten backcountry sites requiring permits.

I recommend the 2,000-foot-long Interdune Boardwalk with interpretive signs for a greater appreciation of the formation, flora and fauna of the dunes and interesting photography opportunities.

 Nearly everyone has to charge up at least one slope – usually with a bit of backsliding.