Long first day of the Bluff Balloon Festival 2010. We collected our show stuff and dropped off Scooby Doo at the Dog Hotel by about 10 a.m. The owner wanted to show us a lamb that had just been born, which was among several other recent lambs. The one shown is one that would stand still for a second, not the most recent one.
I was hoping to stop at the Cajon Group of ruins, part of Hovenweep National Monument, on the way to Bluff, but we didn't find it. I'd been there about 15 years ago and thought I had it mapped on Google, but all we found was slick, muddy roads, ending up in three different Navajo "outfits," as my father-in-law Jack Wade used to call them. The roads kinda reminded me of being back at Chaco; they were slick as snot.
Anyway, we got to Bluff, had a late lunch, checked in at the Desert Rose and took a nap. 'Bout sunset we went up on the bluff above Bluff and caught the sun's last rays streaking across the canyon-cut landscape, looking south across the San Juan River valley toward the Chorrizo Mountains in NE Arizona.
To the school for the Navajo taco dinner and entertainment. We hear there's more than 20 balloons here this year and they had a good flight Friday morning. A few more are expected in for the weekend flights. The sponsors surely sold several hundred Navajo taco dinners last night!
What a varied program! Lots of round-dance songs, a piano solo, the cloggers shown, a country singer and the young yei-bi-chai dancers shown in a line. Several of the dancers used small hand-drums ... I liked the detail on this one.
Today we'll set up our booth after the pilot's meeting in the community center. This morning's launch, if there is one (weather rules all in ballooning), will be right outside the community center. We think we've got good photos in card and print form, and we may be able to offer cards this afternoon of pictures taken this morning. So, we'll see how it goes. This afternoon is a SW cuisine show, then a glow in the evening.
The real event, if weather allows, will be the launch west of Bluff in Valley of the Gods State Park tomorrow morning. It will be COLD, but visually thrilling! tv
1 comment:
The sunset photo: just wonderful.
and the closeup of the tambourine(?) and fancy sleeve: that too is really striking.
Have you been up in a balloon? I see all those jagged rocks where the balloons launch . . . gives me the willeys to think of landing among them. LJH
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