Saturday

I'm almost ready to start the long trek home, but before I go I want to tell you about some scenic views that just can't be missed when you're down this way.

I took a morning off from ballooning last week, and drove the “Turquoise Trail” from Albuquerque (ABQ) to Santa Fe. Don't miss it!! Cutting north from Interstate 40, about 20 miles east of ABQ, SR 14 meanders along the high plateau on the east side of the Sandia Mountains, going through villages full of art galleries and Indian craft shops. But, I didn't stop at those – just can't take in any more.

BUT, I did take a 14 mile detour off SR 14 to the highest point of the Sandia Mountains - 10,700 feet above sea level, 5,000 feet above the valley floor along which runs the Rio Grande.

Unlike most mountain tops where the view is crowded by trees or other mountains, from this one you can see all the way to the western part of forever – according to the Automobile Club guide, the Sandia Crest panorama “encompasses 15,000 square miles”. That's a big lot of desert, mountains, city, volcanic cones . . . . And the road up to the Crest provides great views of the plateau and prairies to the East.

These photos are from the Fiesta toward the Sandia Crest; then

from the Crest looking west.

Take your telephoto lens; a tripod, lunch, and go!!

I paid only a brief visit to Santa Fe; walked through the Old To

wn main square which is much larger and more picturesque than that of ABQ. Local craft people sat on the porch floors of adobe buildings that line the square, selling their own silver and turquoise crafts. Evidently they have to be licensed as authen

tic to be there, and a lottery decides who gets a turn to sell.

I didn't do justice to touring either Santa Fe or ABQ – guess I'll have to come back :)

And, just so I don't forget why I came here, here's a photo of a morning "Mass Ascension" -

organized chaos, but beautiful, isn't it?

Morning at the Balloon Fiesta

Dream – I'm reading a book – a mid-40's male detective remembers 15 years back to when he ignored the long blonde hair on the stairway – and, the aftermath. The price 'they' paid, for his oversight.

Is it morning? Still dark, but I hear more cars passing; get up – 4:30, yes, time to get up. Wash with babywipes (no water); dress in the ever-so-dim light of battery operated lamp; jeans, 3 layers, cap, Canada bandana, cloth gloves.

Sky is black, stars abound, no light on the horizon.

Meet new-found Minnesota friends in next campsite who crew for 2 Canadian balloons; drive to Field;give parking attendant banana bread; go to Crew Hospitality tent.

Breakfast – breakfast burritos, all you can eat Krispy Kreme donuts; Belgian waffles, juice, coffee, coffee, coffee. Several hundred pilots, crew and Fiesta volunteers laugh, chat, eat, and get ready for the day.

Off to launch site – continual phone calls between fellow chase-crew; pilots (2 balloons from Montreal). Pilot briefing with weather and ground control is over – pilot has to decide - Yes, we'll go; no, not yet; no, wait, YES, NOW.

Sky lightens a bit in the east; stars still glimmer; concessions open selling coffee, 'funnel cakes', breakfast burritos, souveniers, . . . Announcers begin their daily spiel, giving the schedule of the day; bad jokes; lifting spirits to an even higher peak. Sightseers crowd the field; stumbling a bit in the grass, waiting for light, for BALLOONS! Photographers everywhere. Check the number of cameras on this tripod!

Crew unpacks “envelope” (the balloon); gondola; ropes; radios; lights; fan; propane. . . . Lay it all out; I get to help lay out the envelope and ropes and then do traffic control, keeping the sight-seeers from walking over the envelope and ropes (Why, they ask, in a snit? Because if your heel goes through the rolled-up envelope it can ruin a $15,000 balloon.) Hurry up!! Pilot wants to go NOW, to be part of Dawn Patrol, launching at 5:45.

Ready? Use fan to inflate the balloon with cold air; keep walking under the envelope, touching only with cloth gloves (oil on hands ruins silk envelope); fluff envelope up so it will inflate more quickly. Attach the Crown with velcro strips; keep people off of the envelope and ropes; answer questions from observers; HURRY.

Envelope is full of cold air, still lying on its side; tethered to truck. Pilot lights the propane; as air heats, the envelope begins to stand up. Noise, flames, heat. Gondola still on its side, crew checking – instruments in? Lights attached; crew has keys to chase vehicle? 2 way radios working? HURRY. Envelope is up, gondola is in position, pilot is in; double checks everything, mixing propane and air to keep the balloon upright and ready to go. . . . . .

Zebra-garbed field official arrives – ready to go?? final instructions to pilot. Pilot decides who to ride – darn, not me, this time. Zebra checks the field, the wind, the 10 other balloons in our immediate area – not yet, not yet - - then, two arms up, frantic whistle, you're off!! The group cheers!! Away he goes.

Crew gets another coffee, then begins the chase. Pilot says “I'll try for Second and Alameda, near the school”. Roger. We drive the streets near the Field, find our balloon touched down in a dirt parking lot of a small condo development. Chatting with our two guys is a t-shirt garbed woman, who tells us she was walking the arroyo (drainage channel), on her way to school.

She helps us pull the balloon over to the pavement (pilot uses hot air to lift off a bit); then to roll it up, pack, lift, put everything away. She tells me she's 'retarded', and we agree that helping with this balloon is a wonderful thing to be part of. We give her a trading card for our balloon, and she carries on to school, to tell her friends about the start of her day.

We return to the field; drive home; and back to bed. It's 8:00 a.m. Can I pick up that dream where I left off? I want to know how the book ends!

My favourites, so far.

"Arky", with lady bug trying to catch up - I guess Noah forgot her.

and, "Pondemonium", the most creative and original I've seen so far.

Enjoy!

update October 4

October 3, 2010

It's been a busy 2 weeks - finished the Habitat build in Grand Rapids, Minnesota; stayed overnight in St. Paul, seeing the season's premiere of Garrison Keelor's "Prairie Home Companion"; waiting in Wichita for a replacement tail light for the trailer, and now have been in Albuquerque (ABQ) for 5 days.

Above is where I'm camped - note the shade tent - it's been in the mid-90's which is a little hot after the long underwear weather during my last 2 weeks in Minnesota.

The Balloon Fiesta is just great - words can't describe the sight - hundreds of balloons, hardly any alike (except Wells Fargo bank - they have 2!); and funny shaped ones too - a parrot from Holland, a little man from Japan, one from Lithuania, and at least 3 from Canada. I hooked up with one of the Canadian ones last night, as I wanted to crew for my home country; so, I toured the balloon field (equal to 54 football fields), looking for Canadian license plates. Didn't I find "Wicked", a ballon built in Aylmer Quebec by a fellow who works 3 blocks from where I live in Ottawa. So, I got to help launch the balloon, and put it away again when lightning started to strike on the field. Have I found a new hobby? We'll see.

So far, the most magical moment of the Fiesta is the sight of 50 balloons directly over my head, backlit by an absolutely blue sky. As I lay back in my chair, looking straight up, the balloons looked as if they were little globes of colour, floating in a clear blue sea. Magic! Here's a picture from my "living room", the RV park is directly across the street from the Fiesta site.

another memorable moment was this morning when I had a breakfast burrito - hashbrowns, chiles, scrambled eggs, bacon, cheese sauce, all wrapped in a tortilla - to my Potluck pals - care to try it?

Spent a half day at the "Very Large Array", in Soccoro about 50 miles south of ABQ. It's a set of 27 radiotelescopes that are linked together; moveable; that are set up to receive radiation signals from outer, outer space. Fascinating (to me), as the scientists continue to try to understand how the universe started; how it's grown; how it is / or is not, shrinking. . . . . Sure makes me think about God - did She know what she was doing or what!!!

ABQ is a beautiful place to visit - the city is in a huge valley -

probably carved by the Rio Grande River; and is bounded on the East side by the Sandia mountains. There are so many places where one can see for miles and miles and miles, across the valleys to the next mountain range. Not like we'd see in Alberta as we drive toward the Rockies, but mountains that are 7 - 10,000 feet high covered with sage brush and tiny trees. Saw a herd of antelope, grazing next to a herd of cattle - anyone remember the song "Oh Give me a home, where the buffalo roam?" No buffalo though.

Am about ready to come home - have been "dry camping" while in ABQ - that is, no electricity, no water. Since it gets dark at 7:00 p.m., the evenings are long, or at least they are until I go to sleep at 8:00 p.m. - I miss not being able to make my coffee and stay in bed in the morning, as I am able to do whenever I have electricity. The other thing I really miss is radio; I considered whether to buy a satellite radio before I left, but didn't; that's the only purchase I should have made. Another thing to consider for next time is to buy a tiny generator, so that I can have some electricity when there are no hook-ups. Ah well, live and learn, eh?