Hiking the Dune Life Nature Trail in White Sands National Park
Distance: 1.0 miles / 1.6 km
The Dune Life Nature Trail is the best day hike in White Sands National Park to explore the best of the dune fields, while avoiding trails that are longer, like the Backcountry Camping Loop or the Alkali Flat Trail.
I say this because seeing the best that White Sands has to offer doesn’t require an extensive amount of hiking. In fact, many of the best and most beautiful locations can be found just minutes away from where you park.
For these reasons, I think the Dune Life Nature Trail is a great choice to see some of the best of White Sands National Park on this relatively short and easy, kid-friendly adventure!
Dune Life Nature Trailhead Parking
Parking for the Dune Life Nature Trailhead is the second trailhead off of Dunes Drive, located just past the Playa Trail.
That being said, the Dune Life Nature Trailhead is generally one of the more popular day hikes in White Sands National Park, meaning that parking may be limited if you arrive during the peak morning and afternoon hours of the day.
Google Maps Directions: Dune Life Nature Trailhead
Hiking Checklist - White Sands
Here is a complete list of must-have things that you will want for any hike in White Sands National Park.
Hiking the Dune Life Nature Trail
The Dune Life Nature Trail begins on a flat trail until it reaches the base of the dune field, about 0.1 miles (0.2 km) away.
This hill is the start of the dune field, and it is generally regarded as the most 'challenging' hill on the entire Dune Life Trail.
Dune Life Nature Loop Trail
Once in the dune field, the Dune Life Nature Trail splits into a 0.9-mile (1.4 km) loop.
With that in mind, I recommend going to the left first because, in my opinion, the trail is easier to follow. However, if you’re most interested in sledding in the dune field, the best sledding hill can be found a short distance to the right, which can be seen toward the end of this article.
In any case, I chose to go left in the clockwise direction.
Once on the loop, the Dune Life Nature Trail simply follows a series of trail markers placed among the rolling hills of the sand dunes.
In my experience, they were a bit easier to follow than other trails within the park, but this can quickly change if you happen to be visiting White Sands on a windy day!
This is the far side of the Dune Life Nature Loop, and it’s where the trail begins to work its way back toward the beginning.
I can’t imagine that this tree will be standing forever, but it felt like quite an anomaly in an otherwise barren and shrubby landscape.
Here, the Dune Life Nature Trail makes a sharp right turn, with the sledding hill and beginning of the loop located just a short walk away.
On longer trails, like the Alkali Flat Trail, fallen trail markers like this can make navigating the dune field much more challenging.
However, since the Dune Life Nature Trail is so short, there is much less variability regarding where hikers walk from point to point, making the trail much easier to follow!
In the photo below, you can see the best sledding hill on the Dune Life Nature Trail, where individuals can be seen enjoying one of the best things to do in White Sands National Park!
Dune Life Nature Loop Junction
This is where the 0.9-mile (1.4 km) loop returns back to the beginning, with the initial hill that led into the dune field located shortly ahead.
Overall, the Dune Life Nature Trail is a White Sands National Park favorite for how quick and easy the adventure can be!
The loop is also a great kid-friendly option and a great sunset hike if you’re looking for something with a short walk back in the dark.
That being said, I highly recommend coming to White Sands with a good headlamp if you plan to watch the sunset in the dune field, which largely has to do with staying safe on these vaguely-marked trails that can be found in all areas across the park.
All said, the headlamp options below are the ones that I use and trust for my own adventures, and I would never recommend anything that I don’t personally use!
