November 5-6, 2011 – Cold, Wind, and Balloons

Saturday, November 5

We headed to the launch field early this morning and got there just in time for the pilot’s meeting.  Since we had rain during the night and the winds were picking up, no launch this morning.  But some neat shots of the mountains as the sun rose:

 

So Pam and I headed to the craft fairs around town.  Lots of neat stuff.  Around 10 AM, we picked up the guys and started to walk to town to meet Mike and T at the Wesley Powell Museum.   As luck would have it, Mike and T stopped and picked us up and away we went to the museum – free admission today since the Balloons did not launch.  It was a nice museum that had lots of information/history on the Colorado River, Glen Canyon, and Page.

Afterwards we checked out the vendors, had lunch and headed back.. The winds have picked up dramatically and we are rocking and rolling in the MH.  Plus it is getting very cold – Brrr.

The winds continued into the night so we just hung out, watched football, had a nightcap at the Elks, got caught up with the blog and emails (if you have not heard from me and should, please send me another email..had some problems downloading.)

Sunday, November 6, 2011

We woke to a beautiful morning – brisk, clear, no breeze – so off to the launch field we went.   And it is a go – we are flying – Yea.   Next stop was a different launch site because of the way the winds were blowing.   And our launch site was the parking lot of Page Lumber.    So as were were unpacking everything, Mike asked who else would like to go on a flight (he was taking the sponsor) and I said “Andy”.  So my Andy had an incredible day! – :-))).

Mike and T’s Balloon House:

Getting the burner hooked up:

 

The boys getting ready to go:   

And they are off:

And playing among the rocks:

 

Coming in for a landing:

A nice soft landing on the grass on the golf course.  The envelope is down and wrapped and we are getting ready to put it away:

Rearranging before putting more things away:

Just hanging out:

More photos of today (thanks Pam for the extra shots):

OR

https://picasaweb.google.com/gardenhavens/110611BalloonRegatta?authuser=0&feat=directlink

And a Video from Andy’s ride:

A great picture of the Dam and Lake Powell from the air:

What a WONDERFUL morning.  Thanks Mike and T!

After we packed up and got the Tracker, we all went to the tailgating party – good food!   And then back home.  Nap time – :-)).

The rest of the day we just hung out.  We will be here until Tuesday morning due to a cold front (with snow) coming in.  Our plans are to head to Pahrump, Nevada for a few days and then south to warmer weather – :-)).

Stay tuned and enjoy today.

November 4, 2011 – Balloon Regatta and Antelope Canyon by Boat

This morning we woke early and met Mike and T at the Launch Field – it was great to see them again.  But launching was not to be.  Even though it was a beautiful morning, there was a wind advisory so the launch was cancelled.   We did hang around for a while and chatted.  Three balloons inflated but when the wind picked up, down they came.   Andy and Steve did help with packing up one of them.

The Antelope Point Marina is one of the big sponsors of the event and they sponsored a “houseboat party” for the pilots and crew today.  So late this morning we all headed over to the marina and the houseboats.

Once we parked, we were “shuttled” to the houseboat.  The ramp down was like a roller coaster:

 

There were 3 houseboats available to us.  The one we were on was 75 foot with 6 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, a hot tub, a slide, and so much more – this must be how the other half lives.

The living room/kitchen area:

Master Bath:

Our room – LOL!:

Upstairs – bar and hot tub – oh my!:

  

Even a sliding board into the lake:

Andy steering the boat on the lake:

   

The food and the company was wonderful.  And a great bonus – a boat trip to the water part of Antelope Canyon.  The tours ran constantly and Steve, Pam, Andy and I were the only ones on one of the tours.   Oh my, such incredible beauty:

OR

https://picasaweb.google.com/gardenhavens/110411AntelopeCanyonBoat?authuser=0&feat=directlink

And videos – thanks Pam:

 

Life is great!!!

We left early afternoon.   Here we are heading out – Mike, T, Andy, Steve, Pam (and ?):

 

What an incredible day!!

The rest of the day we just hung out.  We did have a wonderful surprise – we talked with Kay and Norval (from Alberta).   A few weeks ago on my blog, I asked for your prayers since Norv had a brain aneurism.   It was so great to talk with both of them.  Norval is progressing day by day so please continue to keep him in your prayers.

And the wind and storm has rolled in:

Lots of wind tonight…yikees!

We are not sure how the rest of the weekend will be so stay tuned.

November 3, 2011 – Balloons, Page, and Movies

 Today was the start of the Page Balloon Regatta and the event was taking place at many of the schools around the town.  This is similar to Albuquerque Aloft in that it gives many children a chance to see balloons up close and personal and learn about them as well.

Since Mike and T were not here, we first decided to watch and then we got involved.

The view from our site – sunrise:

And they are off:

 

We then took off in the Tracker to see if we could help and even get more pictures:

 

Andy, Steve and Pam helped with this Balloon – they put “weight on” as another person hopped in and the away he went again:

Another one that was helped – they went back up to land another place:

 

We then saw that the wind was bringing the balloons over the Elks so back home we went.   And this one came in for a landing:

So we all helped bring him in and pack him up – the pilot’s nickname was “Burner” – how funny.   He told us he needed crew but we are committed – oh well.

From there we went to one of the local schools and watched this balloon.  It was tethered and giving rides.   This is an incredible story – the woman who owns this balloon goes to various schools and gives tethered rides to handicapped children.  How inspirational!

 

 

What an exciting morning.

Later this afternoon, we walked into town, had supper and saw the movie “Dolphin Tail” (great film!).  We finished our evening with a nightcap at the Elks.

Another wonderful day.