Ten Months on the Road: Monument Valley, New Mexico, and White Sands National Park
Making our way east and south through the Desert Southwest, taking time to stop and recharge along the way.
April 1 - 9, 2026
Monument Valley, UT, Four Corners, Albuquerque, and Alamogordo, New Mexico
“Thy Word is a lamp until my feet and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105
After Zion and Horsehoe Bend, we continued snaking along the UT/AZ border until we got to Monument Valley. This is a famous, world-class national park run by the Navajo Nation. We enjoyed the driving tour, which is about the only thing there is to do in this very remote place (one of the many places we’re glad the trailer didn’t break!).
In Four Corners, we each stood in a different state for a photo op. Nate had fun running from state to state.
At a quick stopover in Albuquerque, we saw dozens of 800-year-old petroglyphs at Petroglyph National Monument.
I have a theory that this section of rocks is where they let the teenagers hang out. The bored youth started drawing on the rocks, leaving their mark for centuries.
One of the great things about not cramming this trip into a week or even month is having the flexibility to stop at unexpected places along the way. On our drive from Albuquerque to Alamogordo we stopped at two units of Pueblo Salinas Mission National Monument.
Each of these stops plus the visitor center were very well preserved with excellent facilities, big parking lots, restrooms, and accessible walkways. I always feel so proud discovering historical places like this that have been preserved and set aside for everyone to enjoy. This is exactly how I want my tax dollars spent.
In Alamogordo we were fortunate to know someone. Ashley was a college student while we were in Guam. Her parents and siblings went to our church, and her little brother was in the youth group I led. Ashley went with us to Manila, Philippines to serve at the orphanage there. Now, she and her husband and their three kids have settled in Alamogordo, NM. Her parents live here too but unfortunately were out of town when we passed through.
Ashley invited us to their church on Easter Sunday. Our family was greeted by no less than 20 people. Their sweet community church gets an A+ for welcoming strangers. They had a photo station and petting farm in the kids’ area. I loved how the walls were painted with fun murals all throughout the kids’ area. It totally sparked ideas for the education wing of the building our church is retrofitting.
Also on Easter, we weren’t sure if our Easter Bunny was going to be able to find us {read: no preparations were done for Easter baskets}. But thankfully the KOA had us covered. Only five kids participated in the egg hunt for 200+ pieces of candy.
Is it Easter Sunday or Trick or Treat?
Just outside Alamogordo is White Sands National Park. Driving through the park was a chilling experience. All of a sudden the hills turn white, the road turns white, and it looks and feels like you are surrounded by snow. But it’s all sand.
The sand is made from gypsum, which is technically clear, but because of scratches on the sand grains, the light reflects as white. It makes for some very pretty pictures—and some fun sledding and sand boarding. We spent the afternoon playing in the sand and repurposed our winter snow shovel for a full-on burial of Sadie and Nate — at their request ;)
The rest of the time in Alamogordo we acted like locals, thanks to Ashley’s recommendations and invitations. Their family collected our packages for us. They also invited Nate to join their son’s soccer practice twice that week. Ten months in, it was awesome for him to do something so normal — a sports practice with kids his age.
Coupled with that enjoyment was chatting with the other moms and dads on the bleacher during practice. It had just been so long!
We had some slower days, including taking an afternoon to go see the new Mario movie in 3D (Nick’s first time in a commercial movie theater since, well, neither of us can remember). We enjoyed the puzzles and games you could check out at the KOA campground.
Sadie learned and then taught us a new game with Dominoes. We were hooked! She also went back to the church mid-week for youth group. I was so proud of her for being willing to hang out with a group of middle and high schoolers, not knowing anyone.
On our last day, we took yet another of Ashley’s suggestions and drove to Cloudcroft, a small mountain town just 30 minutes from Alamogordo but much higher elevation. Up here, the temperature drops a good 10-15 degrees, and the plant life goes from desert scrub to alpine forest. The kids and I went on a beautiful hike while Nick went on a very difficult (and muddy) mountain bike trail.
It was neat being way up high looking out over White Sands National Park. The white sand really stands out from a distance!
Our stay in Alamogordo had a totally different vibe compared to the previous few weeks of travel, and that is because of a factor that we’ve seen play out throughout this trip. If we know just one person in a new location, it completely transforms the experience from feeling less like strangers to more like guests.
Local recommendations translate into not having to figure a place out all on our own. Invitations to join a church, sport, or other gathering transport us straight to what we’ve missed the most—community.
Having been on the receiving end of these gestures, there’s no question that one of our takeaways from the trip will be passing along the elements of hospitality we received. Because as increasingly weary travelers ten months into the trip, we appreciated every morsel of effort from those who have welcomed us to their town.
We look forward to paying it forward.
Roberts on the Road
For those just finding us, hello! Inspired by the Year of Jubilee in Leviticus 25, our family is on a yearlong RV road trip in 2025-2026 to celebrate my husband’s retirement after 20 years in Naval Special Warfare, as well as our 24 years together during the ups and downs of it all.
With our 12-year-old daughter and 9-year-old son in tow, this trip to explore America’s national parks and beautiful places is intended to help our family reflect and reset as civilian life begins.
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