PHOTOS: Snowmass Balloon Festival fills valley with color

Snowmass Town Park was filled with more than 30 hot air balloons over the weekend for the town’s 49th annual Snowmass Balloon Festival.

Balloons were scheduled to be launched on the mornings of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, as well as Friday evening for the Night Glow, weather permitting. Friday morning, however, brought with it high winds, which made launching the hot air balloons dangerous.

In lieu of launching the balloons, two crews decided to set up their balloons and tether them in place so attendees, including a group of students from Grand Junction, could bask in the site of the almost 100-foot-tall balloons and their bright colors in the morning sunlight that peaked over Snowmass’ hills and mountains.

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Disappointed, but understanding, I snapped some photos of the pair of balloons and went on my way. Fortunately for me, I got an invite back to the park for the following morning to see if the balloons could actually be launched and if I could catch a ride on one.

When I arrived at the park around 6:30 a.m. on Saturday, I had high hopes. I checked the weather as soon as I woke up, and according to my iPhone’s weather app, the winds in Snowmass were 10 miles an hour. Hot air balloon aficionados at the festival said this is the highest wind speed that balloons can be safely flown in.

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The morning was cold and dark, a hint of sunshine gradually lightening the gray sky. The pilots were scheduled to have a meeting at 7 a.m. to determine if the conditions were safe to launch the balloons in.

A large crowd of volunteers and attendees had gathered at the park already. The announcer was playing music, vendors were making breakfast burritos, hot coffee, and hot chocolate, and a merchandise table was selling event paraphernalia, like posters and t-shirts. Everybody waited expectantly for the all clear.

Pre-flight

While this was going on, a pilot balloon — or a pi-ball as it is known in the hot air balloon community — was launched. The pi-ball is a normal looking balloon, like those at a kid’s birthday party, that gets let go. Depending on how this balloon reacts, it helps pilots gauge how their own hot air balloons may act once up in the air.

During another pi-ball launch earlier in the morning, when the balloon was released, it soared straight up into the air and stopped. Several hot air balloon crew members said this was the first time they ever saw this happen. A balloon stopping in the middle of the air is not good. It means there is not a lot of wind further up in the sky, which would cause the balloons to have little movement. Hot air balloons depend on wind to move and steer.

The only navigational tool on a hot air balloon is the extremely hot flames that are emitted into the balloon itself, also known as the envelope. The flames go into the envelope, which causes the balloon to rise.

The second pi-ball launch proved better than the first, and pilots and crews were given the all clear to begin setting up their balloons.

Setting up a hot air balloon is both a straightforward process, but also a time consuming one. Because of the nature of the activity — floating through the air in nothing but a basket and a huge fabric balloon — safety is a top priority. Things need to be double- and triple-checked.

Crews usually transport their baskets, balloons, and other equipment in trailers attached to their cars. Some of the cars have “balloon chaser” stickers on them because the balloons do not always land where they took off from.

The first thing to come out of the trailer is the basket itself. The basket holds the two propane tanks needed to fuel the flames, as well as some additional equipment, like radios and extra tools. During my flight, it fit three people comfortably. 

After the initial setup, which included attaching the envelope to four poles on the basket, attaching additional wires between the two, and securing the device that the flames come out of, the balloon was ready to be inflated.

A gas-powered fan is used to inflate the balloon. It is positioned right at the opening to the balloon, which starts off by laying on the ground, and the air gradually fills up the inside cavern of the balloon. And cavern is the correct word to describe the inside of the balloon. The balloon I flew with could hold over 100,000 basketballs.

The flight

Looking inside the largest yellow balloon I have ever seen, it reminded me of elementary school when a parachute would be brought out during gym. In the rising sun, the inside of the yellow balloon was made lit up from the outside, and you could see the shadows of people walking by.

Once the balloon was almost all of the way filled with air, crews shoot flames into it to further inflate it and get it up off the ground and floating in the air. At first, the flames shocked me with their loud noise and extreme heat, but you quickly get used to them because they are used so often, both on the ground and in the air.

Now that the basket and balloon were standing upright, the crew was almost prepared for takeoff. 

The first balloon in the sky was one with the Colorado flag on it. When it launched, a dark blue bulb with splashes of red, white, and yellow, a cheer went up from the crowd. It floated over the field for a bit, waiting for others to join it, before it drifted off toward the golf course next to the park. 

Other balloons came from New Mexico, Missouri, and other states, and each got a cheer in turn as it floated upwards into the air. Those in the baskets returned the cheers with waves to the crowd as they rose hundreds of feet into the air.

My balloon was one of the last to take off, and the wait was well worth it. Climbing into the basket, I could feel it begin to lift off the ground. A couple of crew members had to lean on it to make sure it did not depart early. Once we were all in the balloon, the pilot set off the flames, and we were off.

We drifted straight up into the air. As we rose, I could see 360 degree views of Snowmass, the valley, and the mountains that surround the town. In addition to the natural landscape, all of the balloons were in the air and spotting them was like a game. Some were low to the ground, some were higher than us, and they were in every direction and came in every color.

The basket was a little shaky if one of the other passengers moved, and the sides were lower than I was expecting, but you quickly get a feel for your surroundings, and it feels like you are floating.

The golf course went by, symmetrical tennis courts were laid out, houses dotted the landscape, ponds glistened in the morning light, and Base Village stood out in the distance. But the best part was the hills and mountains. I saw the iconic stripe on Mount Daly, one I normally see on my commute into Aspen for work, at a different angle. It loomed over everything, and, even though I had a birds eye view of everything, it made me feel small. In a hot air balloon, everything on the ground looks tiny, but you also feel tiny. 

You can see the horizon, you can see the hills and mountains almost wholly for what they are, not just staring up at them from their bases. You can visualize the vastness of wilderness and only imagine what lies in it. I got lost in observing the world around me — the only sounds were the rush of the wind and the faint music notes from a song the announcer was playing. The only smell is that of the fresh air that is guiding our balloon through the atmosphere. 

The sound of the flames brought me back to the basket. We were getting ready to land and a command of “hold on” from the pilot was taken seriously because as the basket touched the ground, it was a bumpy landing. We were jerked in the basket for a couple of feet before we stopped. We landed on the golf course, and all at once, I and my thoughts were brought back down to earth.

Regan Mertz can be reached at 970-429-9153 or rmertz@aspentimes.com.