Balloon Fiesta - Day 1

Favorite Photo:

The 2019 International Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta has officially begun!  We purposely did not schedule a work shift for the first morning so we could attend the event as guests.

Saturday morning at 6 AM starts off the event with Dawn Patrol.  Around 8-10 balloons inflate and lift to check out the conditions at different altitudes.

I love Dawn Patrol because the balloons have lights hanging below the baskets which make them look like lanterns in the sky.

Then at 6:30 AM there is a morning glow where the balloons inflate and blow their flame to make the balloons glow in the still predawn morning.  At at 6:45 is the opening ceremony where the Star Spangled Banner is sung and the pilots who have not inflated yet will light their flames which is called "candle sticking."  A balloon carrying the American flag lifts during this time.

An then Mass Ascension begins where there are around 550 balloons that inflate and lift.

We ran in to Linda & Randy on the field and tried to stay together as we watched the show.  (We met Linda & Randy at the Angels Spring training last February in Arizona where we were all volunteers and became fast friends.)

Randy & Linda

Linda and Nancy

Linda & Randy and Nancy & Al

With the heavy crowd we often got separated from Linda & Randy and had to call each other to reconnect.

Linda & Randy

At mid morning a fog set in and many of the balloons did not end up lifting.

Yoda and Darth Vader balloons from Belgium
and Black Sheep from Brazil

Lottie Dottie Chicken from Brazil

Black Sheep from Brazil
(I think it looks more like a cow then a sheep to me)

Here you can see the fog that set in

American Indian street performers

Itsy Bitsy from Belen, New Mexico

Cynthia the Seal from Battle Creek, Michigan

We made our way across the field to the Gondola Club where we would be working for the afternoon session.  Here is the view from the VIP Gondola Club.

The traffic cops that control the balloons on the field and coordinate their inflation and lifting is done by the people knows as Zebras.  Many dress in crazy outfits!  Here is a gathering of Zebras on the field.

While we were on the field, our friends took photos of the balloons going over our trailer.

After the morning session from 11-1 was the first of four parties we would attend during the week.  This one was the "Welcome Party".

Linda & Randy and Al and I worked our first shift at the Gondola Club during the afternoon session.  Three of us were golf cart drivers shuttling guests from the parking lot to the club and Randy was a parking attendant.

Al teaching Linda how to drive the golf cart

Randy in action in the parking lot

The guys looking professional.....

and the way they were before they saw me taking their photo!

It was a good start to the 2019 Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta!

On our way to the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

Favorite Photo this entry courtesy of Al:

With my water-ski injury and the heavy winds, we spent a couple of additional nights at the Elks lodge in Boulder City, Nevada.  Towing a large trailer in heavy winds is no fun!

We made up time by doing a longer drive day than usual and drove all the way to Winslow, Arizona where we stayed at the Elks Lodge for two nights.

 I was still trying to rest my foot so on the last day we walked the three blocks to the "Corner of Winslow, Arizona" so we could "stand" there like it says in the Taking It Easy song lyrics made famous by the Eagles.

Standin' on the Corner (with the help of crutches)

I love the way Al captured the truck and the truck in the mural window!

Standin' on the opposite corner

There were a couple of souvenir shops on the corners and the Eagles music was playing and their memorabilia items for sale were popular items.

Some of the Eagles memorabilia for sale

One the opposite corner was Tommy Dukes and his guitar playing some good tunes for the tourists. 

African American Musicians from Winslow

Tommy Dukes

Nancy getting some Big sound!

One thing I didn't notice until we were leaving is that the mural was painted on just a facade with no actual building behind it on the corner.  That line from the song put this town on the map!

Next we made our way in to New Mexico.

We spent a night at the campground at the Sky City Casino about 45 minutes west of Albuquerque.

We hoped to stay two nights at the casino but they were booked for the second night.  Our friends, Joie & Mike posted that they were already at the Albuquerque Elks Lodge so I asked them if there was room for us there.  They told us there was lots of room so we drove over and got parked in their lot.

As the day wore on, more and more RV's were arriving and squeezing into the lot.  Most were staying there for the Balloon Fiesta.

We spent one night at the Albuquerque Elks Lodge and then waited for our friends Linda & Randy to arrive from Amarillo.  While waiting we left to empty our tanks and then came back and filled up our fresh water tanks in preparation for 10 nights of boondocking on the Balloon Fiesta grounds.

Linda & Randy met us at the Elks Lodge and  took on water before our three rigs caravaned to the Fiesta grounds.  We needed to drive over together in order to be parked together.

All lined up ready to move to the Fiesta grounds

Here's a short video of our caravan leaving the Elks Lodge:
https://www.instagram.com/p/B3OuK4lhsC_/?igshid=h75h11azh3c7

We got checked in to the VIP North Lot and set up our rigs.  Joie & Mike in the Class C on the left, Linda & Randy in the 5th wheel in the middle, and Al and me on the right in the travel trailer.

Here is our "street" for the next 10 days in the VIP North Lot!

Al made a big pot of chicken noodle soup in our Instant Pot along with Red Lobster biscuits for all of us for dinner.

Our first sunset from the Fiesta grounds

All three couples signed up to be volunteers, which are referred to as Navigators, at the VIP Club they call the Gondola Club.

The next morning we walked from the North lot to our volunteer location at the Gondola Club all the way on the other end of the field.  We had an orientation to attend.  I loved the view of the nice green grass on the field.  By wearing my hiking shoes I was able to walk without much pain in my sprained foot.

On the grounds is a statue to Sid Cutter who was the founder of the Fiesta.

Sid Cutter's vision put Albuquerque on the map as the hot air balloon capital of the world. Sid had no idea that a little birthday party surprise for his mother would evolve into the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. Thanks to Sid's sense of adventure and tenacity, the Balloon Fiesta has grown from a modest gathering of 13 balloons in 1972 to the largest gathering of hot air balloons in the world.

One Albuquerque

The next morning the Fiesta officially opens and we had to set our alarm clocks for 3:30 AM to get to the Gondola Club by 4:30 AM to start our shift!