Around New Mexico

 

We took the tram up to Sandia Peak overlooking Albuquerque.  Lunch at the top at the High-Finance restaurant was very good.

On our way to Santa Fe, we stopped in Madrid.  Maggie's Diner was where Wild Hogs was filmed. 

The local Indians set up to sell their jewelry and pottery just off of the main square in Santa Fe.

Loretta Chapel in Santa Fe has a wooden carved staircase that has no center support.

 

The New Mexico State Capitol building is very plush.  Enjoyed seeing the art work in the corridors.

On Wednesday, we visited the Acoma Pueblo about an hour West of Albuquerque.  It sits on top of this mesa about 350 feet above the surrounding valley.

13 families still live in the Pueblo.  Our young guide was very informative about their customs and history.  The pueblo dates back to the 1500's.  Women of the village own the homes.  The youngest female in a family inherit the home.  Our young guide was in her early 20's and lived with her mom, dad, 2 brothers, and 2 sisters in their home in the pueblo. Her family is very traditional, so she's determined to marry within the pueblo and continue the tradition.  If she should marry outside the pueblo, then she would have to leave.

Adobe oven for baking bread.  These are not used anymore.  Residents have a lot of the modern appliances.  Most work in the surrounding area including a near-by casino.

Balloon Festival

Saturday, October 4th.  The first day of the Albuquerque Balloon Festival.  The Wizard balloon is the first one up. 

It was freezing cold the first morning, but Wow!! what an experience.  Pictures to not do justice.

Monitors (the zebras) will tell each balloon when they can lift off.

These pictures are taken right next to the RV park where we stayed.  This is just a short distance South of the Festival field where they take off.  554 balloons were registered this year, and I think all of them were in the air for the Sunday morning Mass Ascension.

This pilot was practicing "touch and go's".  He barely cleared our campers.  His comment was "just dropped in to say "hello"."

Below are the 5 gas balloons that took off on Sunday evening.  50 hours later the leader was over Lake Superior.  The others had already landed in Nebraska and Wisconsin.  

One of the 5 gas balloons was displaying a Georgia flag.

These gas balloons are filled with hydrogen.  The pilots drop sand bags called ballast to rise and release hydrogen to drop.   Sooner or later they run out of either sand bags or hydrogen.  One of the crew members said they always have a choice of pushing one of the 2 pilots overboard if they run out of sand bags, but it's frowned upon by the Fiesta Committee. 

 

 

Arielle the cow balloon was the largest.  Conditions have to be perfect for her to lift off.

 

 

Sunday night Balloon Glow.  This is a very popular event.  There were hundreds of balloons inflated and tethered to the ground.  They count down over the loud speakers and the balloons all light up at the same time.  Spectacular!!

Napa

 There are over 400 wineries in Napa Valley.  We walked into the tasting room for Stag's Leap, and saw the prices started $40 per bottle.  Decided to try another winery.  Below is Castello  de Amorosa and several views through the castle and winery.  We had a very informative tour on how this winery hand picks their grapes and then how they process them into wine.  We bought a couple of bottles of very nice wine (not $40 a bottle).

 These grey egg looking things are misters to keep the humidity high where the barrels are kept.

 We passed on buying a barrel for $8,888.00.

Redwoods

 Path through the Redwood Forest.

 We drove all over the Redwood Forest looking for the elk at all the meadow viewing areas.  We just happened to see them in the middle of the cabin area.  I guess they like the grass better.

 

 It's amazing that a high wind took this tree down in 1991.  Below kids are climbing over the root system of the Dyerville Giant.

 It will take hundreds of years for this giant tree to decompose.

 

 

 Views from Crescent City, California.   Battery Point lighthouse above and other scenes from this same point below.