Albuquerque Fun Continues

 The Boomers are a very social group. During the Fiesta we had Happy Hour every day to find out about the happenings the following day. Another event was the CARE Auction. People donated items to be auctioned with all the proceeds going to Escapee's CARE in Livingston, Texas. It is a place for RVers to go if they need rehab from surgery or they can't be on the road any more. Our auction raised over $5000 dollars! That was a hefty amount for 47 rigs! 

Another perk of being an Escapee Boomer is having a front row RV site at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. Another perk is crewing for a balloon. Our pilot and his crew had to leave early so Bob and I were able to stay in Sol and watch the balloons drift over the RV parking area one morning toward the end of the Fiesta. The water tank is in front of Sol!

 Bob and I enjoyed watching the balloons drift over the RVs. Some came pretty close, but none landed on an RV. There is an empty field in the middle of the RVs where some came down. A few went into the cemetery west of the RV Park.

Later that morning, Bob and I went for a drive up to Sandia Crest. We took Cibola National Forest road 165 from Placitas. The road started as a narrow paved road but quickly turned into a hard packed gravel road with many ruts. The views from the road were great when we had them, but the clouds moved around the mountain changing our views.

 Once at the top we went to the overlook to see Albuquerque.

 But the clouds moved in once again!

 It was cold at the peak, but there was 2-mile Cafe and Gift Shop we were able to go in to get warm.
When we went down the mountain, we drove NM 536 down to I-40. Since we were close to Kirtland AFB, we made a stop at the commissary for a few things before returning to Sol.

It was time for a night glow with the special shapes balloons so we walked to Fiesta Park with a group of Boomers to take in the experience. We enjoyed walking around the field as the balloons were being inflated. Then is was 'fire in the hole!' and everything glowed!

While we were waiting for all to be inflated, there was a gorgeous sunset!

After the glow, we all wanted pizza! The Fiesta vendors were extremely crowded so Bob, Jade, Nancy and I drove to Blaze Pizza. You create your own pizza and it was very good. Unfortunately, on our back to our rvs, we couldn't find an open street. The police had everything blocked for the Fiesta traffic. It took us 45 minutes to get back when it was only a 10 minute drive! No, no one delivered to the RV parking area--we tried!

Our last night in Albuquerque four of us helped a Boomer celebrate her birthday at Bosque Brewing Company. Debby told us about a campground on BLM land southeast of Moab--our next destination.

Bob and I had a great time at the Balloon Fiesta--we were there for 15 days! It was time to move on as we had full grey and black tanks and we also had reservations at Arches National Park for the following weekend! Time for more adventures!