A Roadtrip Horror Story
The New Mexico roadtrip and visit to White Sands National Park that went bad: What to do when your roadtrip goes wrong.
My family lived in New Mexico for several years on a mesa next to the Jemez Mountains. I’ve always loved visiting the desert mountains and landscape; experiencing something so different from the green of Tennessee. While it wasn’t my first visit, it was my first time shooting film in New Mexico for my print shop, and I was so excited for what I’d capture! This is the story of what happened, and a list of things that can help you navigate your roadtrip emergencies in the future!
Desert sunset in Albuquerque, New Mexico
The night before we left on our big roadtrip, mom and I went to a beautiful park to watch the sunset and I captured this glowing cactus on 35mm film. (Available in my print shop!)
My brother lives in Albuquerque, and my mom had driven out to spend a few weeks with him in June. I had been wanting to visit him this year, but with my health taking up most of our extra money, I didn’t think it was going to happen. Because of how long and arduous her trek to NM was, we ended up planning a way I could help her drive back to Nashville. My husband had just enough Southwest points for my flight out there, so I booked my ticket. When praying about the trip, the Lord gave me the phrase “redemption roadtrip”, so I lovingly declared that the name of my trip. I had no idea of the roller coaster of a journey that was in store.
I spent two days in Albuquerque with my family, visiting old and new favorite spots (like Slow Burn Coffee!), and celebrating my little brother’s birthday a few days late. On Monday morning we packed my mom’s car and headed 3.5 hours south. I had made one request for this trip - that we make a stop at White Sands National Park. It was a beautiful drive through the desert, and I even had some friends out of the blue send me money… just because! I sent Ev a portion of it, and waited to decide what to do with the rest, as I still had 4 days of this roadtrip with my mom left.
We arrived at our hotel (about 45 minutes from the national park) to change and grab a late lunch, and then made the drive further into the desert. We arrived and parked at the Visitor Center to use the restroom and purchase a gallon of water so we could stay hydrated in the 101 degree heat, and then began our drive into the park.
And then the ONE THING you never want to happen on a roadtrip happened…
My mom’s car. Stopped. Moving. There were no lights on the dash. There were no obvious sounds of something suddenly giving out. The engine simply turned off and wouldn’t restart. But just wait, because THIS WAS ONLY THE BEGINNING of a series of events…
White Sands National Park
While it’s called “sand”, it’s actually a thing called gypsum. This is the only place like it in the whole wide world! There aren’t any other gypsum dunes this expansive. When you climb on top of the enormous dunes, you see them go on and on - it’s a sight to behold, and I was so excited to finally get to experience it! (Photo available in my print shop!)
The next fun happenstance was that we didn’t have cell service, and our phones said SOS. The government missile testing site that borders the park jams all cell service. But thanks to the emergency satellite function, I was able to send a text to my husband and group of friends back home, asking them to pray. One of the big things I’ve learned this year is how important it is to be able to live from the foundation of the heavenly Father’s love for me. I stepped away from the car and reminded myself that in this situation, He was going to take care of us and help us. I then felt prompted by the Holy Spirit to switch my prayers from “please make the car start and fix it” to “please send us what we need to get through this”.
We flagged down some other tourists leaving the park and asked them to notify security when they got to the entrance that there was a broke down vehicle in the park, and not long after, an older couple stopped and helped us trouble shoot. The husband happened to be a retired deputy and had a decent amount of knowledge. Just as we were running out of ideas to try, a National Park Police officer showed up, so the kind couple to continue on their way. The officer made space so we could sit in his air conditioned truck, found a tow truck for us, and while we waited for its arrival he told us wild stories about things that happen at the park due to it bordering government testing grounds, and stories of drug smugglers crossing from Mexico through the dunes at night when it’s extremely hard to be caught. Let’s just say… while this is a beautiful place to experience as a tourist during the day, I wouldn’t want this man’s job, or to be here after nightfall.
Upon realizing that this was our first visit, and we hadn’t even made it to the first pull off to explore, he offered to give us a private tour of the park while we waited for the tow truck. We arrived at the first pull off and I grabbed my camera and hopped out of the truck, immediately noticing something very strange that hadn’t been there before… the distant mountains we had seen while driving in were gone. There was a tan wall in the distance instead. The officer then told me we were going to have to pivot; I had 5 minutes to get the photos I wanted, and then we needed to make rounds to warn people of the approaching sandstorm because it was going to be bad, and that we would then need to make it back to my mom’s car to block it off and prevent someone from hitting it due to where it had stopped and the low visibility.
Something I never thought I’d ever have to experience - a sandstorm in White Sands National Park.
Most of us have experienced walking in sand… it’s not easy, but sand is also a nightmare for camera gear. I quickly realized hiking up a dune was a bad idea, and the epic shots I wanted weren’t worth getting caught in the storm unprepared. I instead worked with the views I had available from down below, and then climbed back into the truck just before the sandstorm arrived. Within just a few minutes of the storm’s arrival, sections of the road were completely covered, and visibility had decreased significantly. It was a bumpy ride as the officer warned people through his mounted speaker system to get back to their vehicles. He later told us that there’s no way to do search and rescue in a sandstorm, so people have to ride it out as best they can and wait for the storm to pass.
After doing his rounds to warn tourists as best he could, we made it back to mom’s car, and thankfully no one had hit it. We parked behind it and waited for the tow truck to arrive. It wasn’t long before it did, and we transferred all our belongings and thanked our kind officer before departing. When we made it back to the main highway, visibility was much improved, but you could see the remnant of dust in the air far off in the distance. As we made our way back to the town we were staying in, our driver told us stories about how dangerous rainstorms in the desert can be. Because the ground is so parched and compacted, the water doesn’t absorb, and instead pools on the surface, causing flooding. It was just two years prior that the very highway we were driving on was wiped out from flooding.
A view of the mountains without full visibility due to the aftermath of the sandstorm.
We made it into town as the rain came in. Rather, I should call it: wet dirt. It was so very different than the thunderstorms in Nashville. The dust in the air made each raindrop a dirty mess! We dropped off the car at the mechanic (which was closed for the night), and were told they’d look at it first thing in the morning. After being dropped off at the hotel, we were so thankful for our quiet room with AC. We snacked, talked for a bit, and then we went to bed under the impression that this car issue was likely to be an easy fix.
The next morning we started planning our roadtrip stops for the day (we were considering Marfa, TX!), and where we could potentially stay the night depending on how fast the car was fixed. Around 10am we called the shop for an update. They were waiting on the Chevrolet dealership to give them an answer about which of the two engines this car had - if it had engine A. the car would be fixed and we’d be on our way, but if engine B. we’d have to replace the engine, which wouldn’t be worth it on this car… so we would be car-less. I was watching the weather as the day went on, and there were large storm systems in the path we needed to drive to make our way East. I began to wonder how the timing of all this would work out, because after what we had been told, these storms would bring the potential of dangerous flooding of the highways. But despite that, I knew that it would all work out and had peace about the whole situation. I was just antsy to know what the solution would be.
Around noon we got the dreaded call.
The car would need a new engine, and therefore, this was the end of its journey with us. It was a bummer, but we had to keep pushing through so we could figure out how to still get home. After weighing out options, we realized it was going to be best to head back to Albuquerque, 3.5 hours north, to leave some extra items with my brother and then fly home to Nashville from there.
An iPhone photo my mom snapped while at the mechanic after receiving the bad news.
But then… ANOTHER issue arose. There were no car rentals in this town, or the surrounding area, that were available to make the one way drive north. We even went so far as to look for a U-Haul truck we could rent. NOTHING. Absolutely nothing was available.
At this point my friends back home were trying to help problem solve. A couple sent money to put towards another night at the hotel, or to make the trek north. One had suggested we take an Uber to my brother’s. We decided to order an Uber to take us to the mechanic shop so my mom could settle the bill and gather the rest of her belongings from the car, and I prayed that there would be someone willing to do the 7 hour round-trip drive at 1 in the afternoon. Thank God, the first driver we ordered for our trip north was younger and accepted his mission, and so we packed his trunk with our stuff, and began our journey back home to Albuquerque. Between the money I had gotten randomly on Monday, and the other money friends had sent, our very expensive Uber was completely paid for!
I didn’t even have time to become frustrated about having to put a decently expensive flight on my credit card when another friend offered to buy my flight with her Southwest points. Within minutes, another friend’s mom had offered to buy my mom’s ticket. It turrns out our mom’s birthdays are one day apart! How crazy is that?
It had stormed earlier in the day just south of Albuquerque, and as we got closer there was a lot of ponding water, and the temperature had dropped dramatically. I can’t fully explain how happy we were to see my little brother again. We had a chill dinner together and watched a Disney movie before going to sleep. The next day my mom packed what she could in her suitcase, and little bro dropped us off at the airport. Here’s what I learned and the biggest takeaways from this trip…
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Despite not getting the epic photos of the sand dunes I had wanted, I still loved the photos I did get to capture of our big adventure. This is one available in my print shop!
When the journey was named Redemption Roadtrip, I could never have guessed what was in store, and how significant that name would be at the end of the trip. Without diving into the depths of my personal story and childhood trauma, one of the things that I’ve operated in most of my life is an unhealthy self-reliance, and a need to be in control. I’ve lived and made a lot of choices throughout my life based in fear, and although not officially diagnosed, had experienced a lot of anxiety.
This trip and everything that happened could have been a very traumatic experience for me if I was still operating in the ways that I had before my inner healing journey with the Lord these last 2.5 years. This trip also would have had an extremely negative impact on my health/body because one of the main triggers of the auto-immune diagnosis I’ve dealt with is stress. But thank you Jesus, the healing I’ve received made this trip a completely different experience, despite it being a series of stressful events. I had so much peace throughout and after. It was truly a redemption of my past, for both my mental/emotional health, and for my physical too.
But not only did I see redemption in that, but God showed up for me in big ways by providing everything my mom and I needed, and He used my found family in Nashville to do it. I didn’t do it alone. And for someone who has historically done everything herself because of fear and control, that is a real miracle.
How to survive a roadtrip gone wrong:
Have your car checked before you embark. Prevention is the easiest way to avoid issues.
Monitor weather conditions of where you’re going, and don’t expect certain conditions to be what you’re used to back at home.
Learn your phone’s emergency settings. If set up, iPhones can use satellite to send texts even when your phone says SOS! If not near civilization, you can text a loved one where you are and they can call a tow truck for you.
Have a portable phone charger, not just a car charger.
Always have snacks and water on hand in case you’re stuck waiting. If it’s cold, have a blanket.
Amazon sells portable tire inflator’s; it could be helpful for a non-blowout or non-popped tire that’s gone flat! About $30 on Amazon.
AAA is nice, but local police can also be so helpful! They typically know local tow trucks and mechanics.
Be flexible as you go! Sometimes it’s for fun, sometimes it’s because you have no choice.
Make a note in your phone of potentially helpful info for situations where you may have a hard time thinking clearly. Emergency contacts, insurance numbers, things to check on your car etc..
White Sands National Park is absolutely going to need a redo so I can fully experience the beauty of that place, but I think next time I’m going to plan for October. Locals told me that’s the best time to visit! So until next time New Mexico…