Balloon Shapes

I don't know how many balloons aren't round.....but the creativity seems to be endless.    A company in Brazil  does many of them.     Here are just a couple.    

 The hummingbird is new this year.....

 Several evenings they tether the balloons and have an "evening glow".    It is spectacular, especially if you walk among them.

 This was an accidental picture....I was taking a shot of Flyer off in the distance and managed to capture the baskets of two balloons as they passed overhead.  

It was Nicholas' turn to fly this morning.    If I had used a tripod, it might have been less fuzzy but I was surprised I even captured it from so far away.  

 And this is the awesome Miller chase crew........

 We don't have to go far.....grab some coffee and a front row seat for a view from the front window of the coach for those very early launches.  

Airabelle is probably one of the most popular shapes.    Owned by a local dairy, it is huge.   On all of the shapes, notice how small the gondolas are in comparison to the balloon....this gives you an idea of size.   Last year, she landed on a major road and tied up traffic for a bit.....

Balloon Fiesta , Year II

We left the western slopes of the beautiful San Juan Mountains just before they got a bit of snow and cold (about 6 inches worth) and headed East to the big city of Denver.   Ahhh,  shopping in the massive mall, familiar restaurants and more pickleball with the Parker Picklers.   And family !!   After 2 days among herds of mule deer in Cherry Creek SP (they fear nothing), we headed south on gusty I 25 to Santa Fe .   The next morning we were up early and off to Albuquerque for the a week of color.      

 Last year, before arrival, I suspected that we would see a lot of balloons.   They would go up and they would come down.   But I never had any idea of the splendor and breathtaking beauty of mass ascentions by 554 colorful and creative shapes that delicately float aloft and sometimes, indelicately, come down with a bump !   EVERYONE should see this at least once.  

 In the middle is Flyer with it's Colorado flag theme and piloted by Jon Schmitz and his Miller chase crew of many years.    All four of the grandkids have escaped from school, jobs and college to be here. It is a family tradition.    And we are delighted to be right in the middle of it all.

 The days start early, 5:30 with breakfast in the tents and then off for inflation at their appointed time.    After an hour or so floating along, the Flyer must come down .    It is getting harder and harder to find open space to land and on Sunday, Jon landed in a residential neighborhood where they were greeted with champagne and the delight of the families.   (The balloons are supposed to supply the champagne but this homeowner was happy to provide it !)  
We are "camped" in the Presidential Lot and overlook the gigantic field.   We have electric and water and the trucks come around daily to empty tanks as needed.   We have wonderful views out the front window.    Mike rents an RV and we are side by side.....they sleep in theirs and hang out in ours.   And we eat a lot, both here and in very good , and sometimes unique, dining spots in town.  

The internet is slow so I am only putting in a few pictures at a time.     This is Snow White and the 3 Bees.    She is new this year and the bee family is a  fan favorite.

Next issue will have the  evening glow and fireworks and more balloons.....!

Shades of fall ..........

The sun came out to heighten the glowing color of the aspen and the snow.   It was a beautiful ride.

 Remnants of the Yankee Girl Mine.......

It was a very windy day and this is a mostly in focus  leaf.     Last night and today it has rained and blown and the temperature keeps dropping.    The hardy pickleball players did not let it deter them however.......and now the sun has come out and the mountains are bathed in new layers of white.

  We had planned on heading to Denver today but Vail Pass and Eisenhower Tunnel are getting snow and very cold temps which are NOT conducive to a lumbering 40 ft moving house.    So we will wait a couple of days........and enjoy our views.

Changing seasons......

We moved up the road a bit and now have in-house WIFI.... feels a bit luxurious and decadent.   But this private campground doesn't allow campfires so we're still deciding if it was a good tradeoff.   The stars out here are brilliant and worthy of contemplation amid the pines and crackling fire each night.   But it is a lot colder than when we arrived so maybe our non-crackling electric fireplace will have to suffice.     Interesting note:   Ouray County has an ordinance that limits outside night lighting to 40 watt bulbs....and we haven't been in town at night to see if and how that would be accomplished.   

On Sunday, after we had moved, the skies darkened and torrential rain and even hail came down.   Even pea sized hail sounds like rocks on the MH roof..... This CG is located  a few miles south of Montrose...a nice community of about 20,000.   As you drive further south towards Ouray, you see the San Juan Mountains.   This is an view when we first came to the area a few weeks ago.

 This was the same view after all of the rain................stunning and magnificent.

 This is the land of large ranches .....horses in abundance as well as cows, mostly black and sheep in the higher country.    But occasionally, you find a bit more exotic sights......like these yaks.   We've seen another small collection closer to Ouray.    The yarn store in Ouray sells local yak yarn....very soft.  

 But we didn't expect to see this in the same field.  

 We wandered a bit farther up the mountains  and the snow cover seemed even deeper.   We're wondering if some of our trails are now impassable.  

I noticed this sign as we were exploring.....not sure if you can read the first word "DEAD"....The road is actually listed on the map.   All of the area streets have regular city street signs but suspect that this one kept being 'removed' so they gave up and someone made a wooden one.   The original probably graces some realtor's wall.  

P has been playing PB with a group on a regular basis about 4 times a week.    Coincidently , one of the guys retired here from Bethel, CT, which is the next town over from where we lived in Newtown.  Last night, we joined him and his wife for dinner.    She grew up in Newtown, as did her mother so we had a lot of history and commonalities to talk about..     And then, later, another couple popped in and they were from Southbury....the next town north of Newtown!!  Small world and fun to share stories.

Looks like we'll hang around here 'til the end of the week or so and then maybe head back to Denver before going to the Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque on the 5th.   Our time on the road is getting shorter and we're beginning to feel the pull of home and friends.

How do you like my new hard drive........?

I'm back at the Looney Bean once more.    Trust me, they make the best frozen skinny mochas I have ever had and I've enjoyed the 2 baristas, especially Morgan, a cute kid with piercing and various hair shades and tattoos.....and she is just so good at what she does.....how refreshing these days !  

Anyhow, the new bigger  hard drive is successfully installed.    Thanks to Mr Fixit....with a little help from the local Apple expert who also works at the Horsefly Brewery and is where you take your MAC for help.....nice guy as well.     I now have tons of storage and probably a lot of other things that I have no knowledge of.    Now, if I only had internet in the moving house.......but then I wouldn't come to the  Looney Bean..... 

We are still in the San Juan Mtns and despite daily rain and thunder and lightning and damp campfires, we still are very happy with this neighborhood.      Yesterday, the rain stopped and the blue sky showed it's magnificence and we headed out.       

This is a view of Ouray as you head south towards Silverton.   

The aspen are just beginning to show their color..........

We chose Ophir Pass this day to explore.   It has some bumps and narrow ledges but mostly it's just a beautiful ride .........

After the heavy rains, the streams and falls are again running......

Once you get above tree-line, amid the rocky landscape, you find the busy marmots.    I managed to capture this one as he was about to scamper into his den.....that dark hole in front of him.   I need to find out info on them but I think they must hibernate....he had a mouthful of grasses.

Ophir Pass connects Silverton with Telluride.   We didn't see any mine debris or buildings but I'm sure it was some sort of road to carry silver and gold.  It was COLD at the top, and windy.    In the low 50's.

As we decended lower, the aspen stands were huge and dense....no color yet.

We came to the old town of Ophir , of which I haven't researched, but it is now a small residential area of cabins and this quaint post office.  

We headed on Rt 145 towards Telluride but came to Mountain Home Village first.    Wow, what a developed  area this has become.    Beautiful log condos, hotels and large homes perched at 9600 ft.   It reminds me a bit of Vail with the flowers and walking paths and scenic golf course.    In the heart of it all is the gondola.....It is functional year round to get you up to the top of the mountain or over the mountain to Telluride.    It's designed to carry the masses and to keep the cars and buses to a minimum. It is a brilliant transportation system....

And a really fun way to get around.    As we came out of the launch pad, I had the feeling we were going to drop like a stone......well, not quite but we did drop and it was a bit like an amusement ride.....with stunning scenery.

The gondola is free in the summer but suspect you need a lift ticket or something in the winter altho it is a main link to Telluride from Mountain Home.

It is popular with hikers and bikers as they ride the gondola up and come back down the mountain via trails .....
This is the only shot I could get of the aspen turning from yellow to orange...blurry as it is.  It was a beautiful day .....

And now, to catch up on the previous week.....  we met Joe and Gay in Silverton one chilly Saturday.   It was fun to share good times once again after our first meeting in Moab and then Park City.    They are off to Albuquerque and then Georgia before heading to the Florida panhandle for a bit.   Hopefully, we'll meet up again.    We showed them Animas Forks and it was cold and drizzly so we didn't stay long.     

 

Then, a few days later, we met up with Nancy......if you've read the blog for a bit, you'll recognize her as the one who just had to ride a water buffalo in Costa Rica.   She was the photographer part of the Art and Photography Tour ..... she was in the Silverton area, camping at 12,000 FT !!!  Her husband finally got a buck tag for hunting and they were up there in the cold and rain and snow.    Alas, the efforts were not successful but they did see a moose.    You are assigned an area so it's not like they could move to a different area.    She was happy to come down to warm up !!  This is a "selfy pic" with her phone.

On another day , we headed up to Owl Pass....not very high or rugged.    Perfect for raising sheep apparently and they were in no hurry to give up the road.    We saw many large herds and 

 the sheep herders wagons.   Years ago, the herders were Basque but now they are mostly Peruvian.   We saw one sitting among the trees .... what a lonely job that must be.    And, one in the area was gored by an elk (according to the local weekly paper) but was able to somehow get himself to help 4 miles away and altho in critical condition after being airlifted out, he was expected to survive.  

In the same area, we saw some deer and as I snapped the pic, he decided to leap the fence.   It's not a great capture but I'm always surprised by what the camera finds.

One morning, on our way to Ridgeway, we came across this pretty site....we'll look for the balloon when we get to Albuquerque.   

OK, almost done with the travelog...... we are only about 30+ miles from the Grand Canyon of the Gunnison NP.    It is very hard to capture the depth and awesome-ness of this deep chasm in the earth.    The Gunnison River carved this scenic wonder.  

This area is called the Painted Wall.   During peak tourist times, they offer boat rides down the river but they are done for the season.....

With all the rainy days we've had, we've almost become accustomed to the rainbows that usually follow.    This one was especially brilliant and complete.


Here's my comfortable spot at the Looney Bean.