Only in Your State | New Mexico |by Emily
Hiking in New Mexico is plentiful, but we’ll bet you had no idea that a hike within one of our state’s most beautiful monuments is home to a bone-chilling legend.
White Sands National Monument is spectacular and bursting with beauty, but there are a few things you should know before embarking on a hike through the dunes. This hike might seem innocent to those who don’t know the history, but legend has it that our White Sands are haunted with tales from long ago, and they don’t seem to be leaving anytime soon.
The term “hiking trail” usually invokes an image of dirt paths, but if you’ve ever been to the White Sands National Monument, you’ll know this isn’t your typical hiking trail. This gypsum dunefield is the biggest in the world, and as you hike upon the dunes it can be easy to get lost or overheat. It’s not advised to start a hike when it’s 85 degrees or higher. If you go at sunset, it will be cooler, but you might bump into something paranormal.
Not only is hiking in the vast sands intimidating, there’s a scary legend that is tied to this beautiful monument.
Legend has it that while hiking upon the dunes, you’ll likely run into the ghost of the Great White Sands: Pavla Blanca.
The story of Pavla Blanca is one of the Southwest’s most interesting, though tragic stories. This legend has been passed down through many generations of the Native Americans of central New Mexico.
In early 1540, a valiant, young, Spanish conquistador, Hernando de Luna, left his lovely betrothed, Mañuela, in Mexico City, to accompany the famed explorer, Francisco Coronado. Searching the uncharted lands in present day Arizona, New Mexico, Kansas and Texas, Coronado followed every Indian clue, every tale, looking for the fabled Seven Cities of Cibola and Gran Quivira, where the houses were said to be studded with gold and the streets were afire with jewels.
Ambushed by fierce Apache warriors, the Spanish explorers fought for their lives. The few exhausted, beaten survivors retreated back towards Mexico City. Legend says that Hernando de Luna fought hard, but was mortally wounded and died somewhere in the ever-shifting white gypsum sands.
Mañuela sought out to find her lover after the news of the battle spread through Mexico City. As she embarked on the beautiful dunes, in search of Hernando, she somehow disappeared. She was never seen again…. until now.
It is said that the ghost of this beautiful, Spanish maiden haunts the dunes of White Sands at night in a flowing, white wedding dress to seek her lover, who was lost and buried beneath the trillions of crystals that make up the dunes.
Mañuela is now called Pavla Blanca, as many have claimed this figure is caused by a wind sweeping over the vacant desert, but local Native Americans believe this is the ghost of the heartbroken Mañuela.
Even to this day, many have claimed to witness the ghost just as the breezes pick up at sunset. Only you can decide what… or who… Pavla Blanca truly is.
The White Sand Dunes National Monument is truly a wonder to be seen, but if you plan on hiking at sunset, it can quickly turn into one of the most haunted trails in New Mexico. Do you dare take that chance?
