Flight of the Nations Mass Ascension

Yesterday's tour guide: "A tourist called the visitor's bureau and asked if you had to be Catholic to watch the Mass Ascension!"

John and I were up early and went to the Flight of the Nations Mass Ascension this morning. 19 countries were represented by the first wave of balloons to launch. We were on the field walking in and out of the balloons. We saw Germany, Lithuania, Britain, Canada, Mexico and Thailand.

What was really neat was that 2-3 rows of balloons would inflate and then launch one after the other until all were in the air and then another few rows would go and then more. It was very orderly except that towards the end the wind had started to blow at about 10-15 mph. The pilots had a hard time keeping their balloons on the ground and in their place. Once they launched, the balloons took off in a big hurry, but not always upward. Some came so close to cars or other balloons that we held our breath. We were on the field for over two hours almost until the last balloon was gone. Then we watched some try to land and with that fast wind, they had trouble keeping them down. Almost every one dragged the ground and then fell onto their sides before stopping. We learned later that three balloons landed in power lines or on poles when they were landing off the field. No one was hurt badly.

Today's excursion took us to Old Town Albuquerque where we again shopped and dined. We found a really nice place for lunch that acted like a Mexican restaurant but the food was plain ole American!

We will have our farewell dinner tonight with Fantasy Tours and then tomorrow morning we'll be heading home. It's too bad we have to leave early because the Special Shapes Rodeo is tomorrow. We'll have to come back again in the future to see them.

Santa Fe, NM

This morning Sue and I sat on top of her RV and watched the balloons launch and then we walked over to the field to watch them throw weights at a target. Today's target was a large blue tarp and a bass boat -- closest one to boat wins the boat! It's not as easy as it sounds. We figure over 100 balloons launched off site and rode the winds over to the field. Some contestants tried to get as close to the ground and target as they could and others would wind up and throw from way above the target. An Interesting game.

Our bus and tour guide came about mid-morning for the hour long bus ride to Santa Fe. We were dropped off down town where we toured, shopped and dined. We lucked into a great little place called Pasquell's with a seating capacity of 49 for lunch. The food was really good and we loved the droll nature of our waiter.

During the tour of Santa Fe we learned about two churches -- St. Frances and the Chapel of Loretto. Both were built in the 1700's in a typical Spanish style which is a long, narrow building with a choir loft at the back opposite the alter area. They are as narrow as the length of the logs in the ceiling. The Chapel of Loretto was part of a girls school. When the building was almost complete, the builder realized that the only access to the choir loft was via a ladder. This would not work well for women. The nuns prayed for a way to build a stairway when a mysterious carpenter came to them, built a spiral staircase and disappeared before he could be paid. To this day no one can explain why this spiral staircase does not fall down as there are no center supports. Also the wood has been tested and the only tree that it might have come from is in Alaska.

There were no balloons flying tonight so we enjoyed a Margarita Party, had a light supper and watched TV.

Sky City Acoma Pueblo

We got to sleep in this morning until almost 7 AM! But then an alert went off on both our phones to let us know that morning winds were delaying todays morning launch. Just as we finished breakfast we saw our first balloon of the day drift in front of the RV! Sue and I climbed the ladder to the top of her RV and watched the balloons launch and float past us for a long time. We figured at least 160 balloons were covering the skies over Albuquerque! Some landed near us, but most just floated past, caught another wind current and reversed direction and floated by again.

Fantasy planned a tour of Sky City an Acoma Pueblo Cultural Center. We rode the bus about an hour and a half west of Albuquerque. This is a Pueblo village that is over 600 years old with some families still living in the homes. Most homes are owned by one family who passes its care down the line of its women as the Acoma are a matriarchal society. We were shown the Mission church and cemetery, and then walked around the city, getting to see vistas from the top of the mesa. We were also able to walk down the original stairway the Indians used to climb to the top.

No balloons flying or glowing this evening.

Balloon Glow - Magical

We decided to stay at the RV today instead of going on the Indian Pueblo Cultural Tour. After all the excitement of last night and this morning we are tired and needing to rest, read, blog and nap! The Fantasy Caravan group provided us with a pizza dinner tonight and then we headed back over to the launch field for what turned out to be a Magical Evening.

  

The field was covered with balloons in all stages of preparation for a glow. We also witnessed the 5 gas balloons that were ready to launch for the America's Challenge. These special balloons are filled with hydrogen and are prepared to see who can fly the farthest and stay in the air the longest time. Once these balloons were off the field they started the evening glow.

The field will hold about 200 balloons so it was very full. Many balloons were pushing against one another. Periodically, the stage announcer would count down for an "All Glow" event when pilots would shoot fire into the balloons for a long time or a "Twinkle Glow" when pilots would turn the gas off and on quickly. They did this for almost a full hour. We stood in among the balloons and then walked out to the edge of the field to get a bigger picture.

Magic!

We hung around for the fireworks display, freezing our arms, toes and fingers but it was worth the stay. They not only shot high, booming rockets at the north end of the field but they also put on a low display along the west side with all kinds of fountains.

Mass Ascension

The noise of shuttle buses and flying helicopters woke us just before 6 AM. The weather forecast at 10 last night showed high winds starting about midnight and lasting through the early morning so we didn't think the balloons would fly again today. But we were wrong! No wind! We dressed in about five minutes, grabbed a cup of coffee at the hospitality tent and got on the first shuttle that drove by.

We arrived in time to see the Dawn Patrol light up and take off. These 10 pilots are licensed to fly at night, so while it is still dark, they put on a short glow show and then float up to test the wind currents for all the other pilots. The weather is perfect -- its a go for Mass Ascension!

Awesome End to the Day!

Well the day may have started off on a sour note but it sure ended on a high one!

As the day warmed up John did a few chores around the RV and ran into town for a moment but after lunch we decided to walk over to the launch field and check out the vendors when there weren't any crowds. We are certainly getting our exercise walking as it's at least 3/4 or a mile one way from the RV. This will make 2 round trips over there. We got our souvenir hat and sweatshirt then met with Sue and Rory and checked out the arts and crafts tent and looked at some chainsaw carvings.

The evening activities were to start at 5:45 pm so we snacked on cheese and crackers and then caught the shuttle back over to the launch field (enough walking for one day!) Rory and Sue thought it was too cold and figured the wind was high enough that nothing would happen this evening. Well, they were wrong!

When we arrived on the grounds only a few trucks had pulled onto the field and we were afraid that the Glow event might not happen. But, when we weren't looking, balloonist started showing up and inflating their balloons! As the evening light was fading, the glow of fire-filled balloons lit the air. And because they were not taking off, the heat from those fires warmed the ground. It didn't last as long as it normally would because the wind kicked up again. But the fireworks show made up for the lost time of the glow.

It was a very magical evening!

Big Disappointment!

We got up at 5:15 AM and walked over to the balloon field at 5:45. The morning glow was supposed to happen at 6:30, open ceremonies at 6:45 and lift off of ALL the balloons was to start at 7 AM.

We walked through some of the vendor area, then out onto the field where all the balloons should have launched but no one was even unpacking their trucks. The wind on the field was well over 12 mph and, according to a pilot we cornered, the winds aloft were over 30 mph. Both way too high for the balloons to fly with. We made an unsuccessful attempt to get coffee (lines were way too long) so returned to the RV for breakfast.

Albuquerque and the Balloon Fiesta

We had a wonderful evening with our friends. Since we did not unhitch last night we were able to get on the road by 8 AM for the almost four hour drive to Albuquerque. We are joining friends from Missouri, Rory and Sue, for this week long festival.

We arrived shortly before noon and didn't have to wait too long in line. Rory had saved a site next to them and, fortunately for us, the parking attendant was aware of that, so he directed us out of line and directly to our site. We are about 3/4 of a mile from the launch field so it won't be a bad walk every day. The festival doesn't start officially until Sat. Oct. 6 but we expect to see some balloons before then. Fantasy Tours has made all the arrangements for enjoying the balloons plus they have planned extra things to do during times that the balloons area not flying.

It was a nice afternoon and evening to sit outside our RV and visit and make new friends with those around us. Fantasy provided a BBQ dinner followed by a marimba concert. The sunset was beautiful and the campgrounds are above the city where we can enjoy the city lights every night.

Friday dawned warm and we spotted numerous hot air balloons hovering over the city. We have been told that they are at the elementary schools kicking off this week of festivities. Fantasy then bussed us up to the Sandia Peak Tramway. This is the longest tramway in the world and goes from about 6,500' to nearly 10,400' elevations. At the top is a ski area with three lifts and numerous bike and hiking paths. We also were able to have lunch at the top. As long as we were sheltered from the wind and had some sun, it was warm but the thermometer said it was only about 45°at the top.

For the afternoon, we toured Route 66 through Old Town, passed by the University of New Mexico and the high rise area of the City. Of course, the highest building was only 22 stories tall! We also visited a Turquoise museum and store where we learned about the gem and how to tell if it is Natural (a mined gem) or artificial (plastic). Do you want to know? Just ask if it is Natural! By law they have to give you papers that say it is Natural. If they can't or don't, then its not the real thing.

We are getting up at 5:15 AM to see the mass ascension! Gotta go to bed -- now!

Durango with Friends

We left Telluride and drove down to Durango so that we could fill a prescription, grocery shop and do laundry in preparation for the week in Albuquerque. We will meet our friends, Dave and Kathy, who have recently moved here. They are excited to show us their new home and new city before taking us to their favorite restaurant. It has been over two years since we have seen them so we are really looking forward to this visit.

Bear Creek Falls

As soon as the sun came up over the mountain tops, we put on our backpacks and walked along the river thru town to the trailhead for Bear Creek Falls. It was a relatively easy hike although going up hill when we are already at over 9,000' elevation does leave us breathless. At about the halfway point of the 2.2 miles hike we came across an interesting place where the creek curls in toward the trail. It is an open area with a few boulders, rock outcroppings and one log arch. People have created rock cairns of all shapes and heights all over this whole field. One creative individual actually propped rocks on top of a stick tripod. As we walked thru it, I had a feeling of quiet reverence as if this were a spiritual place.

Near the end of the trail we spotted a water fall and thought we were at Bear Creek Falls. But we soon discovered that the falls were actually further up and much, much higher. Another couple directed us up another path so that we were almost under the falls. It was beautiful and I imagine that during the spring melt it could be spectacular!

We stopped for a picnic lunch on the way down. It has been a nice warm afternoon and we enjoyed reading and working outdoors. John is treating me to dinner out tonight. We will stop at Arroyo for a glass or two of wine and then dine at 122 Oak which has come highly recommended.

Telluride

Another gorgeous day! As soon as the sun shown over the top of the mountains, we got the bikes out and rode up the hill east toward Black Bear Pass. There were two Jeeps creeping down the Black Bear road which made us think we would like to try it. If only we could find someone to go with us! Black Bear is the hardest trail in this area so it is NOT a trail you want to do alone.

We came back down path and through town to ride the bike path on the west side to about 3 miles outside of Telluride. John was having trouble with his shifter so we found a bike repair place who can get the work done this afternoon. We had lunch at Floradora Saloon. Awesome hamburgers! The rest of the day was spent enjoying the sunshine, doing a few chores and napping.