I hiked at White Sands toward the northwest from the recreation area. It was 102F or 103F degrees (approx. 39C) when I started. I intend to hike to Lost River in the northwest corner of the public area sometime.

I took 1.5 gallons (5.7 liters) of water and had another gallon in the truck. I went about 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) into the dunes which is around half the distance to Lost River. With more than half the water left I could have gone farther but returned due to time. There were tracks, cans, a toy ball, and paper and plastic near the recreation area but no farther than 2 or 3 dunes from there.

Some poles with instruments, weather ones I think, were near the amphitheater.

This hole is probably an insect or lizard den. It is about as big around as a finger.

This salt cedar was a welcome sight. I rested in its shade. There were many tracks there. An orange and yellow wasp or bee and other insects were here.

When I saw this ball in a flat I thought it was another toy. It was about 1.5 feet (0.46 meters) in diameter, metal, hollow, light, and had no corrosion. The bottom was dented. An ant colony lived under it. I didn’t think to look all over it for pipes or tubes but I think it is a storage tank for fluids from a plane or missile.

Update: Unnamed source says this is probably an item sent up on balloons for tracking with radar.

This pedestal, about 2 to 2.5 feet (0.61 to 0.76 meters) tall, was enclosed in a dome of roots and branches.

This pedestal is 10 feet (3.1 meters) or more tall. The roots of the plants that grew on it are visible.

Here is a 360 degree panorama from the top of a tall dune.

On the way out, I saw these mounds. They look like something dug here but there are no tracks. Why are they in a line? From here I returned to the truck almost the way I came in.