Must See Event in Albuquerque

Hot-air ballooning is an all-year-round sport in Albuquerque. We have the landscape, the weather conditions, the sky and the enthusiasts for the sport. From most parts of the city in the northeast and northwest, it is a rare day that you go for an early morning walk or drive without seeing hot air balloons floating overhead. The balloon fiesta park is tucked away close to the northeastern edge of the city not far from Corrales and Rio Rancho.

During the last few weeks you could tell the city was gearing up for a big event. The morning skies gradually got busier although nowhere near as busy as they will be for the daily colorful mass ascensions of the two-week event. I imagine that the out-of-town pilots have been arriving and joining the locals in practice runs and testing of the air currents in the run up to the big event. The 38th International Annual Balloon Fiesta opened in Albuquerque yesterday, October 3.

The balloons are wonderful to watch floating overhead or in the distance. It is awesome to have one land almost in your backyard. But it is simply a most exhilarating experience to be on the launch field, up close and surrounded by the energy, hubbub, and color of hundreds of puffing, colorful shapes suspended from comparatively small wicker baskets periodically spouting flames as if concealing angry dragons. It is worth waking up at 3:00 in the morning (my preferred show time) to experience the drama.

I love getting to the field early in the morning before the shows begin with dawn patrol. It is dark and cold (the coldest time of our high desert night. Dawn patrol, quiet sentinels distinguishable only by their intermittent flashing lights float silently aloft in pre-dawn darkness to test the state of the wind current and flight conditions for the morning. Seeing dawn patrol is akin to receiving an assurance that ‘yes, the air is right. Soon the sun will appear above the Sandia Peak and the promised show will begin.' And what a show it always is! Will I be on the field again this year to see it? You bet I will.