WHOW WHOW Balloon Fiesta

The above shots are from the Palo Duro Canyon in Amerillo, Texas.

My friend Lyn, who was at the same campground, loves to sight see so we headed off to the Sandia Peaks Tramway,  All I can say is WHOW again the west amazes me to no end.  This tran can carry 50 people to the top and the elevation is 10,378 ft.  It carries 250,000 people a year.  There are two towers on the way up.  It was constructed between 1964-1966 at a cost of 2 million dollars.  It is a double reversible passenger aerial tramway.  Five thousand helicopter trips were made during construction of the 2 towers and the cable installations.  There is no water up there so they have to haul it up on the trams.  Lots of ski hills with long chair lifts on the other side of this mountain.  There was a restaurant at the top and one at the bottom.  We had lunch before we went up because we were told the one at the top was expensive.  I ordered toastadios, it was hard tortilla with chicken and cheese on it.  It also had refried beans, quacamole and sour cream.  They goofed up the order so it took us longer. It was under $10 and  very good.  The views going up and down were beautiful and you could see all of Albuquerque.  It takes 15 minutes one way and at the top they have a museum showing how this all came to be.  There was even snow under the decks.  Major ski hills down the other side.  It was interesting while we watched the tram come up the mountain to pick us up there was a guy riding on the top outside.  We asked about it and they said they are always checking the cables and all the mechanical stuff and that is the only way to do it.

I am finally figuring out the pictures, can make them smaller and move them around, but they just don't want to go where I put them anyway some are here.  Later I will be putting all my pictures on Flickr and you can see the rest if you want.

I came into the Balloon Fiesta on the first of October caravaned in with Lyn.  We parked with a group called the Boomers, a chapter of the Escapees group that I belong to.  There are 30 MH's here and we are parked facing one of the landing fields.  Thought mmm I can get some great shots and boy did I ever.  We went over to the park and took the video to learn what we have to do to crew for the balloons.  They need lots of help laying the balloon out, dragging the heavy bag that it is stored in.  If the ground has any sharp objects like stones we lay out a tarp before the balloon goes out.  It is velcroed about four places on the balloon to keep it together so they come off and you pull it out as flat as you can.  There is a rope on the top of the balloon that holds the balloon as it goes up so it doesn't get away from you.  They have a big fan that blows air into the balloon.  Two people have to hold the ropes and the opening open.  When the balloon is full the pilot lights the burners and gives it hot air which makes it rise, all the while we are holding the basket down and it is tied to the truck bumper.  If you are lucky he will say get in.  The first time up he let me go with him.  WHOW I was worried about getting air sick, but there really isn't any motion you just float along.  The view is amazing.  He had streamers to drop on a target.  The balloons are dependent on the wind and the currents and that decides where you launch the balloon.  We launched outside the park and dropped the streamer on the launching grounds.  The wind was pretty strong and we went so fast he couldn't get down close enough to hit the target.

In Albuquerque there is what they call a box where the winds move back and forth over a certain area.  Some days it works and others it takes you outside it.  Well we followed the Rio Grande River for quite a while then landed on the Indian Reservation, a place that we are told not to if at all possible.  You have to call the band office and they have to come out with a key to unlock the gates and then follow you in.  Well we landed pretty hard and got dragged a few feet before he took the air out of the balloon.  Our chase crew came in after we had most of the balloon ready for storage on the truck.   The reservation was paid a quarter million last year to be able to use their land, this year they wanted a lot more and the Fiesta said no so they closed the property.  Needless to say the Balloonists are boycotting the Casino.

This is just a small part of this past week and will add more hopefully tomorrow before I head to the Grand Canyon, time to go to bed. I have never gone to bed at 9:30 in years but after this busy week I am totally exhausted.