From a small gathering of 13 balloons in 1972, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta has grown to become the largest balloon event in the world. Held each year during the first week in October, the Balloon Fiesta now attracts almost 600 balloons and 1000 pilots. It's not uncommon for as many as 80,000 people to be on the 80 acre launch field during a weekend session. The Balloon Fiesta grounds are over 350 acres and park up to 2,000 RV's (most sites with no water or electricity). Another 6,000 RV's park at nearby campgrounds and most motels are booked months in advance for this event.
So yes, the Fiesta is a huge deal and it's been amazing to be a part of it. I'll try not to drone on and on but please just scroll on if you get bored :). We did park on the Fiesta grounds and yes, we did take the cheapo (well, $35 a night!) sites. A group we are part of, Full-time Families, held a hang-out here so we were parked with the group and were blessed to meet many new friends and do fun activities together.
Every morning for 9 days most balloons launch and fly if the weather is favorable. This year every single morning except the last day, there has been a green flag! In the evenings there is a "glow" on the launch field when they will inflate but stay tethered to a truck instead of flying. Countdowns are done over and over and the pilots all make their balloons "glow" at the same time.
A number of our group signed up to help crew a balloon named "Carried Away" so you'll see pictures of that. Everyone that did it had a great time and a few people even got to go up! Each crew member gets a pass to the field and a "button" that allows access into the building where breakfast that provided for crew. Since we had so many that wanted to crew, we had to share the passes and buttons but it all worked out well.
I've got a LOT of pictures from both my camera and other's so I'll try to keep them in a little order but bear with me if the order seems a bit odd at times :).
***Morning Launch***
The first morning we got up before 5 to catch the shuttle from the campground to the field. We kept hearing that the lines would be ridiculous and we didn't want to be late! We easily hopped on the first bus and were on the field in less then 10 minutes. The temperature was in the 50's and still falling at that point so before the action started we were chilled to the bone! We specifically made sure to be there at 5:45 for the laser light show in the sky and it wasn't worth it. But, once the sun came up we were so glad to be there!
 |
| Trying hard to stay warm! |
 |
| "I'm freezing!" he would randomly yell. |
 |
| Dawn patrol was 10 or so balloons that went up first each morning. Amazing to see them light up the sky! |
 |
| There was literally walls of balloons. Behind us was the same thing. It made you feel so small! 22 elephants can fit into a normal sized envelope when it's inflated! |
 |
| Just in case we get separated! |
***Evening Glow***
Each balloon had a trading card that the kids LOVED to collect so when we went to the field in the evening they would frantically run around getting as many as possible. Our latest count it well over 100 different cards - a long way from 550!
 |
| The policemen on horses told us one of their specific jobs is to search for lost children. Thankfully we never had to deal with that. |
 |
| Loved to watch the Sandia Mountain change colors depending on the sun. |
 |
| To much fun results in whiny 4 year olds. |
 |
| Makayla and her friend Violet |
 |
| Waiting for the glow to start. |
 |
| Most of my pictures didn't turn out but it was incredible to have the field lit up with balloons! Not to mention the roar of the burners! |
 |
| Sorting our trading cards. |
 |
| The New Mexico sunsets are awesome! |
On the weekends the Fiesta put on an extremely good fireworks show too that we loved to watch.
***From the campground***
We actually only went over to the field as a family 1 morning. Eldon went to crew 6 times and the last morning I went over alone. Each morning the wind sent the majority of the balloons over our campground and many landed among the campers and in a small field at the end of our row. I can't even describe the thrill it gave me to peek out my bedroom window and see the sky full of hot air balloons gently floating towards us. I'd quickly scramble outside and the children soon joined me. Often Makayla and Michael would take a 2 way radio and go ask for trading cards when they began to land near us. It was typical to have various groups of kids racing around from balloon to balloon!
 |
| Our bedroom window view! |
 |
| It's so exciting! |
 |
| We could even carry a conversation with some of the pilots as they floated by! |
 |
| Landing in the field near us. |
 |
| Michael, Makayla, and friend Tonia were delighted to help a pilot and his crew pack up one morning! They also got to help hold down a different one until the chase crew arrived. |
If I had to pick a single favorite balloon picture that I took of the week I believe it would be this one:
On a normal morning they would float over our camper for a good 2 hours! Because of the Albuquerque Box, which is due to the mountains and wind currents, they would often float over our campers, then go straight up, and head back towards the field. Just staring into the sky could quickly make you dizzy since they traveled different directions depending what altitude they were at!
No comments:
Post a Comment