Map
Where it is
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Full mapPlan your stop
Before you go
2 active White Sands alerts
- ClosureDunes Drive safety corridor and Interdune Boardwalk closureMentions Dunes Drive, referenced in this guideDrive through the Dunes Drive safety corridor without stopping or exiting; the Interdune Boardwalk is closed. - The corridor spans mile markers 3–5.5.Official details
- ClosureBackcountry camping closedBackcountry camping is closed, and there is no overnight lodging in the park. - NPS says the campsites are closed for rehabilitation; no reopening date has been determined.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
White Sands Tour Guide
Your drive to Balloon Area Restroom, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for White Sands National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this area
Roadrunner and Primrose: Picnic Shelters in the Dunes0:00 / 0:31
“You're approaching Roadrunner and Primrose, two picnic areas with shaded tables among the dunes. If you've brought lunch, this is a good place for a break without committing to a hike.”
Plays on the road 0.1 mi from Balloon Area Restroom in the Parkwolf White Sands Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Sunset Stroll: Walk with a Ranger
- The Kit Fox’s Big Ears
- Backcountry Camping: Sledding and a Dune Loop
- Clear Crystals, White Dunes
- 23 audio storiesacross White Sands’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Gemsbok, Great Horned Owl, Roadrunner, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 5 trails, 24 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
More about Balloon Area Restroom
A useful break on Dunes DriveBalloon Area Restroom is a roadside restroom pullout along Dunes Drive.
Balloon Area Restroom is a roadside restroom pullout along Dunes Drive. It is a practical stop during the park drive, with two separate wheelchair-accessible vault toilets.
Know the water limitationThese vault toilets have no running water.
These vault toilets have no running water. Despite the name, this is a restroom stop, not a balloon attraction.
Wildlife
Wildlife in White Sands
39 sightingsGemsbokMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
17 sightingsGreat Horned OwlMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
10 sightingsRoadrunnerMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
11 sightingsRavenMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
16 sightingsHorned LarkMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
20 sightingsBlack-throated SparrowMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across White Sands. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
