Balloons, Madrid & Santa Fe, NM

Tue (10-6-09): Busy day today. Watched this mornings balloons go up and over our coaches. From inside I could hear them giving more gas to the flame so they would rise. Chuck took some MORE pics. A group of us left at 9:00 a.m. to head for Madrid (left over artsie hippy town where they are still smoking pot out in the open) and then up to Santa Fe for lunch at an authentic mexican restaurant--Tomasita's, shopping and sightseeing--Loretta Chapel--to see the free standing wooden staircase. We rode with the Halsteads and the Mertz.

I was on a mission today to find some more Kingman Turquoise jewelry. I had gotten a bracelet at Gouldin's in Monument Valley, UT when we were there two years ago and now I was looking for a slide, earrings and ring. Well, I found a ring in Madrid and then the earrings in Santa Fe. This is a good time of the year to shop because it's the end of the season and alot of things were 60% off! Mem and I were in one jewelry store where we found my earrings and they had white and black turquoise, which is called White Buffalo. The lady there explained that they just found this kind of turquoise in the last 8 yrs or so and that it is white because it lacks copper. Well, it was time to meet the guys for our return trip back to Albuquerque, so we had to leave. So now we have another mission--find White Buffalo jewelry! We are going to Old Town Albuquerque tomorrow!

MADRID, NM

Street Vendor

Downtown Madrid

Maggie's Dinner Where Wild Hogs was Filmed

Fixer Upper in Madrid?

Java Junction Outside Cafe

Mail Boxes in Madrid

Coffee and Weed for Breakfast?

Neat Shops in Madrid Sell Jewelry and Other Oddities Like These Clocks for $65.00--Now Here's How Chuck can Use His Spare Computer Parts!

SANTA FE, NM

Baskets for Sale

Red Chili Peppers for Sale

Donna Shopping in Old Town Santa Fe

Old Town Santa Fe Shops

Now Here's a Trike!

Loretto Chapel, Old Town Santa Fe

Miraculous Stairway in Chapel

Albuquerque, NM - Morning Balloons Overhead & Sandia Peak Tramway

Mon (10-5-09): Yesterday's happy hour was very windy with dirt blowing--not much fun. Balloons are rising again this morning, but I am watching from inside the coach trying to get some pictures uploaded to this blog!!! Looks like there is very little wind this morning. Chuck went out to take some pics as the balloons are going right over the coach. There were 2 balloon accidents today and one man fell out of a balloon basket when it clipped the top of a tent over on the balloon field.

Today we drove up to the Sandia Peak Tramway to have lunch at the Sandiago's Restaurant at the bottom of the tram and then take the tramway up to the top of the mountain. This is the world's longest tramway [2.7 miles] and it is 10,378 ft high at the top.

Entrance to the Tramway Ride and Restaurant

Tram Car that We Took to the Top

Ski Lift and View of the East Side of the Sandia Mt

Albuquerque, NM - Mass Ascension & Gas Balloons

Sat Oct 3, 2009 - 7:00 A.M. Mass Ascension

Some of the Group up Early for the Mass Ascension that Starts at 7:00 a.m. {Yes, it was COLD}

Early Morning Mass Ascension

Wally the Fish

Pepsi Supercan

Cutie Dink

Gizzmo

Owl and the Pussycat
{From Front Royal, VA}

Sarah the Witch

Sushi Special Shape Hot Air Balloon

Horse Patrol with Balloons in the Background
[We are right across the street from the Balloon Fiesta, camped in a parking lot--great view!]

Ham-Let When Pigs Fly [Yes, Folks, We've seen a Pig Fly!]

Balloons Down the Hill from the Coaches [Looks like they are right among them!]

Joey Little Bee & Lilly Bee [They take off attached and then unattached while in the air as 2 separate Hot Air Balloons]

Beer Stein Named "Salud"

Airabelle the Cow

Sat Evening: Chasers Club, Gas Balloon Race, Twilight Twinkle & Fireworks

We went over to the Balloon Fiesta to check out the vendors and then eat at the Chaser's Club. Dinner was salad and lasagna.

Dinner at the Chaser's Club on the Balloon Fiesta Grounds [clockwise: DonnaT, Bob & Carolyn Chinn, Lois & Jim Campbell and Noel & Wrestle Bob Nelson]

Dinner at the Chaser's Club [Nan & Jim Cooper, Mem & Larry Halstead, JR and Betty Mertz and Bob & Carole Shafer]





Gas Balloons Inflated for the Start of the Race

As the sun went down, the wind came up and the race beginning had to be cancelled till another day, twilight twinkle was also cancelled because of the wind, BUT the fireworks went off and was different from what we have seen before!

Rally Host, Jim Campbell, Showing his Balloon Fiesta Spirit!



Carole Shafer & Jim Cooper




Sunset Over Albuquerque; Chuck's Sunset Pic with Larry Halstead's Profile



Harvest Moon Over Albuquerque

Albuquerque, NM - Balloon Fiesta Arrival

Thu (10-1-09): Today we all traveled from the Dancing Eagle Casino to the Camping World parking lot on the outskirts of Albuquerque to line up for our caravan into the Balloon Fiesta RV camping lot. Some of the folks not already traveling with us joined us there also. Thanks to Jim & Lois's planning, it was smooth sailing and we are all parked at the Balloon Fiesta RV lot. We have one open space in the middle of our camping lineup so that we can meet for Happy Hour around 4:00 pm each evening, when there isn't some other activity going on. Tonight alot of us went to Rudy's for BBQ. VERY GOOD! Here's a few pics of some of our group enjoying the BBQ.

Bob & Carole Shafer and Nan & Jim Cooper (Crystal Lake Friends who joined our DI Rally)




Mem Halstead and Lois & Jim Campbell (Rally Hosts)





Brenda & Dick Snyder and Charlie & Echo Richardson

Bob & Karen Beyer

Tomorrow a.m. [Friday] they launch about 3 hot air balloons from each schools in Alburquerque. It will be early in the a.m. and probably hard to get pics. {Yes, it was still low light so got no pics.}

Cortez, CO to Dancing Eagle Casino, Casa Blanca, NM

Wed (9-30-09): What a trip we had today from Cortez, CO down NM 491 (Old US 666--Devil's Highway) thru Gallop, NM to Casa Blanca. 50 to 60 mph winds and blowing sand & dirt. We all pulled into a school parking low as awnings had to be duct taped, an emergency window opened and was flapping and sand & dirt filtered thru closed windows. What an experience, but all is well now.

Bob Nelson's Coach Ahead of Us With the Sand/Dirt Blowing

Bob Nelson's Bedroom Emergency Window (Left Side) Flapping in the Wind

JR Mertz on the Top of His Coach Duct Taping His Awning

Duct Taping the Cooper's Awnings (Pete Palasota, Jim Campbell and Nan & Jim Cooper

Wrestle Bob Nelson Duct Taping His Awnings with the help of Larry Halstead, Chuck Tolson and Pete Palasota

We are overnighting at the Dancing Eagle Casino where we met up with other Balloon Fiesta attendees--Smith/Filice, Ferrebees, Shafers and Raymonds--all of our SOB (some other brand) coach friends. We all ate in the Casino and I think all had the prime rib special--two for $10.95 if one person got a players card in the Casino! Some gambled after dinner--we went to bed! We will head for Albuquerque tomorrow morning!

Here's a short video clip of the wind blowing the flags in the school parking lot:

Cortez, CO

Mon (9-28-09): Today we drove from Silverton, down to Durango and then west to Cortez, CO. The aspen were beautiful with the oranges and reds of the bushes along the way. We stopped at the Wal-Mart in Durango to stock up and then it was on to Cortez. The Sundance RV Park (Good Sam), site 36 at 815 E. Main St. 970-565-0997] is our home for the next two nights. The weather is wonderful and we had Happy Hour outside of the Campbell's coach tonight. Most of us went to the Hong Kong restaurant for dinner tonight. We'd highly recommend it.

Palasotas, Mertz, Halsteads, Tolsons, Nelsons (Sadie & Sassy) & Campbells