Saturday, October 9, 2010

Monaco International Luncheon, Friday Balloon Festival

From Monaco Luncheon at El Pinto

Part of the festivities with the Monaco Group include two really nice luncheons. We didn't take any pictures yesterday, but today we thought to include them. We had a great Mexican buffet which included all the goodies. Here are a few pictures of our group:


From Monaco Luncheon at El Pinto
From Monaco Luncheon at El Pinto
From Monaco Luncheon at El Pinto


The following picture includes our table mates: From the left, our neighbors parked next to us, Mary & Jim Richards, Jeff & Teri Huntington, and Bob.

From Monaco Luncheon at El Pinto

At the opposite end of the table: Kay and David Piper and Peggy & John Rahkola.

From Monaco Luncheon at El Pinto

David Piper was kind enough to take this final photo of Bob & I.

From Monaco Luncheon at El Pinto

Tonight keep your fingers crossed for calm winds and the Balloon Glow!

Friday, October 8, 2010

Balloon Fiesta - Friday Morning

From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning

What a treat - finally, we are at the 39th International Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque New Mexico! Balloonists start very early. How early? Let's just say the breakfast venues close at 7:00 AM. We have never attended an event starting in the dark.

From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning
From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning

From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning

We're skipping many photos taken in the dark to get right to the action. Balloons are being prepared for launch as soon as dawn approaches.

From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning
From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning
From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning

The couple in the foreground look as though they're wondering what to see next. With 385 acres of balloons preparing to launch, it isn't an easy choice.

From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning
From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning
From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning

The scale of these giants are deceiving. From the air they look puny, but when standing right next to them, it's an entirely different matter.

From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning
From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning
From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning

Here are some of the specialty balloons, meaning not of typical shape. . .

From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning
From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning
From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning

Here are some we thought exceptionally pretty. . .

From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning
From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning
From Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, Friday Morning

After taking over 500 photos this morning, including them all is impossible. Here is a brief slide show, and the 100+ best photos can be found on the web album. Have fun and we hope you enjoy then all!

Friday evening Balloon Glow

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
With the last rays of sun shining on the Sandia Mountains, everyone anticipates the evening balloon glow.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
As we arrive on the field, hundreds of balloons are being inflated.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
This picture shows several of the specialty balloons in a row.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"Arky" from Grants Pass, Oregon, is a favorite.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"Patriot" is from Glendale, CA, and is the first time we see it.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"Sarah the Witch", (center, from Palm Desert, CA) is flanked by "Matrioshka" on the left from Dakota Dunes, SD, and a commercial unlisted balloon on the right we hadn't seen earlier.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"Cent'r Stage" is from Albuquerque and is an awesome balloon. The size of these balloons can be enormous, and this is certainly one of the largest.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"Pumpkinhead" is from Scottsdale, AZ.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"The Rooster" is from Enschede, Netherlands and is my personal favorite.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"She's a Lady," from Wheat Ridge, CO on the left, and "Sea Fantasy," from Wausau, WI on the right.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"Polly" from Campo Largo, Brazil is a crowd pleaser.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"Polly" together with "Tom" from Kluizen, Belgium.
From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"La Ristra" from Socorro, NM.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
No listing for this one in the program, but perhaps Sponge Bob?

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"Haunted House" from San Paulo, Brazil.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"Joey Little Bee", Albuquerque; "Joelly" from Maricopa, AZ; and "Lilly Little Bee" from Peoria, AZ. Hopefully I got them in the right order.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"Three Monkeys" from San Paulo, Brazil.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
Front and rear views of "Jim" from Albuquerque, NM.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"Airganic Garden," Cary, IL.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
"Carousel," Orchard Lake, MI.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
The crowds this Friday night are unbelievable. Perhaps 100,000 are on the field to watch the tethered balloons light up. It is an awesome sight, but walking back to The Popeye Express was a challenge in the dark. Once the balloons turn off their flames, darkness descends - and fast! The picture above is what we see walking up the ramp towards our parking area. Good luck trying to find your bike in the dark.

From Albuquerque Balloon Glow
The Magnificent Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum, worth a visit all by itself - awesome!

Each night, wind or no, the sky lights up with fireworks. Albuquerqueians know how to celebrate!

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Snake River Adventure

From Snake River Adventure

Bob has always wanted to take a jet boat tour up the Snake River at Lewiston, ID. They call it the wild and scenic Snake River with good reason. It is all that and more. The River Quest Tours board us and we leave around 7:45 AM and return close to 5:30 PM; a very long trip and outstanding ride.

From Snake River Adventure

Butch, our captain and owner of the River Quest Tour company does a splendid job of both getting us over numerous rapids and relaying the history of the area to us. The trip is 184 miles, almost reaching the dam to the south. The water level is too low this week to go further. Fine with us, as riding rapids all day is a bone jarring experience, while also being lots of fun!

From Snake River Adventure

One of the features which makes this trip so nice is the numerous stops along the way. If I recall correctly, the convergence of the Salmon River, shown below, actually happened prior to our first stop at the property now owned by the Nature Conservancy. The picture above, is Butch standing next to his jet boat while at our first stop.

From Snake River Adventure

During our trip, we see all sorts of water craft navigating the river. Here is an example, along with some wildlife. Butch relays that during the 1930's, the government actually homesteaded 5 acre parcels. The rock wall shown, is one of several examples along the route extending for several miles, providing trails for homesteaders to reach their parcels. Have you ever wondered what the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corp.) got paid for?

From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure

Butch relays amazing stories of bringing a paddle-wheel boat up these waters, and the major effort taken to get it over all the rapids. Very difficult and labor intensive. The question, of course, is why? Well, here you see it, remnants of a supposedly rich copper mine which history proved to be not as rich as claimed. A picture of this old paddle-wheel is passed around, and I take the best picture through a plastic page protector I can.

From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure

The following 2 pictures show the constant change from rapids to calm waters, with amazing desert scenery to enjoy.

From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure

The next few pictures are of our lunch stop at the Kirkwood ranch. We find a picnic table right next to the creek and are happy to enjoy the cool shady spot even though we are enjoying very cool and mostly cloudy weather today. Many times it is not unusual to experience 105 degree weather, which is one reason they have several stops to allow people time to swim and cool off.

From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure

There are several buildings, a museum, and lots of old farm equipment on display. I show some of this in the slide presentation at the end of this post, but I prefer to walk around and take in the scenery. I am the only person to hike to this grave site.

From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure

Time to re-board and head south!

From Snake River Adventure

The last picture in this next group shows the highest peak at 9,000+ feet visible from the water. Beautiful scenery!

From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure
More views prior to our next stop.

From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure

We make a National Hells Canyon Recreation Area stop, for swimming, a brief rest, and refreshment. I also find deer and a cute tuxedo kitty, shown in the slide show.

From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure

After almost 700 pictures, there's no guarantee, but I think this next picture is at the convergence of the Grande Ronde River. We're getting closer to our return.

From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure

Our next stop is to view fossils! Here is an example followed by some of the wild river!

From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure

I love the colors of the desert as shown below, followed by more scenery, and then we come to the petroglyph!

From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure

The basalt formations are amazing, and all too soon, we are returning to Hells Gate State Park in Lewiston, ID. As you can see, the sun comes out, making it an end to a perfect day.

From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure
From Snake River Adventure

It's impossible to tell the story of our trip with only a few photos. Normally I try to limit each post to about 20 pictures, but found it impossible to do so. The pictures chosen were pertinent to the story, but not necessarily the best photos. Only you can judge that, but here are some if the other photos if you care to enjoy them!