Up, up and away

Saturday, September 24 (Day 8) — It's hard to believe we're already into the second half of our vacation. The days just fly by when you're out seeing and doing a lot as we are. This was perhaps the most intense day of activities because we got such an early start and wound up staying out after dark.

The 5 a.m. start time went off pretty much as scheduled, but not the way we had planned it. Last night Roni set the clock radio for 5:30 and set up with the front desk to provide us with a wake-up call. I didn't realize this, because had I known she was shooting for 5:30 I would have argued to make it earlier. We were planning to make a trip down to White Sands National Monument to see the hot air balloon invitational. It's been an annual tradition for years and attracts hundreds of visitors to watch an estimated 40 balloons make a mass ascension around 7 a.m. I figured that by the time we got up and hit the road and made the 15-mile drive down to the park it would be close to 6 a.m., which would give us plenty of time to work our way through traffic and still be able to see the balloonists setting up before liftoff.

I'd been tossing and turning most of the night, as I do when I know I'll have to be awake early to be somewhere. But of course when I wanted to be awake at 5, I was in the middle of a deep slumber. What woke me up was not the desk wake-up call or the clock radio, but the loud thunk when Ben rolled out of bed and hit the floor. That got everyone's attention, and soon I had the rest of the family up and getting ready to leave, although none too willingly. Roni was convinced I was starting too early and Ben said we should all go back to sleep for a couple of hours. Insanity prevailed and we left the hotel by a quarter to 6 after picking up some breakfast snacks from the front desk. We drove through darkness on quiet Highway 70, the only other traffic a half dozen vehicles heading our way. Several of them turned off at Holloman Air Force Base 10 miles south of Alamogordo. I was beginning to wonder if I had been wrong dragging everyone out to the car so early when suddenly traffic came to a halt and we found ourselves waiting on the highway shoulder at the tail end of a long line of cars streaming into White Sands. Now I was feeling vindicated. But that feeling was quickly replaced by concern as we sat there for 15 minutes without reaching the entrance of the park. Soon I realized what was happening: traffic heading north from Las Cruces was being given priority for entry to the park because those folks had to turn left off Highway 70 and were blocking traffic otherwise. We were starting to get steamed when suddenly our line moved and we were ushered through the park entrance in one big line. No admission charge today because of the balloon launch.

We reached the huge parking lot about 6:30 and scrambled to get our folding camp chairs out of the back of the car so we could stake out our viewing spot on the dunes before the show started. Not to worry as it turned out, because the balloonists were as late arriving as we were. This gave us time to wonder at the incredible place White Sands is and take in the beauty of a postcard-perfect sunrise over the mountains. I shot off several frames on the digital camera, looking forward to filling up my cards with images of colorful balloons soaring into the morning sky over pristine white gypsum. Then to my dismay I saw the red battery-low light come on, which meant my picture taking would be limited unless I got fresh juice. No problem, as Roni had told me all along that she had extra batteries in the back of the car. Unfortunately, when I needed them most, she couldn't find them this morning. Sigh. I did my best to conserve power and decided I'd just shoot what I could until the camera died. Roni had brought along her Minolta so we'd get some photos one way or another.

The ridge along the dunes filled up fast, but there was no sign that the balloonists were going to take flight anytime soon. Seven o'clock came and went. The sun burst onto the scene in brilliant gold and orange rays about 7:08. People were growing restless. Then there was an announcement to the pilots that there was good and bad news. The good news was that they would be able to fly soon. The bad news was that because temperatures had been so high and were expected to be so again today, there would only be time for a short flight. Any of the pilots who wanted to fly could, but they weren't being held to it. And for a few minutes it looked like the whole morning would be a bust. Indeed, no one rushed to set up their balloons. But then finally a couple did. Then a couple more. And pretty soon all of them were working with their ground crews to inflate the massive sacks of material. The balloons grew quickly on the desert floor. Then a few minutes before 8 o'clock the first one lifted off to applause from the crowd. Then another and another. Twenty-one in all, spread out over close to an hour. I shot as many pictures as I could and still the battery wasn't dead. The balloons were a dazzling array of colors and designs. Many wore simple stripes. There was one dressed like an American flag, another with a picture of a cactus and a cowboy snoozing alongside. There must have been close to a thousand people lining the two ridges along the launch site. Kids with snowboards coasted down the dunes. Families shared picnic breakfasts and chatted. A group of German tourists sat a few feet from us. Photographers by the score — using everything from cheap instamatics to high-end gear with 1,000 mm zoom lenses — jockeyed for position along the flight path. It was crazy. It was fun.

The sun was arcing higher now and we were shooting directly into it. A large purple balloon in front of us was offering rides to kids and occasionally rose about 20 feet off the ground, which was just enough to temporarily block the glare. I roamed around the perimeter of the launch zone and tried to shoot different angles. When I looked at these shots later back at the hotel I was very pleased with the way they had turned out.

Ben was not as enthralled as we were and soon lost interest. He enjoyed playing in the sand, making trails and building little castles. White Sands may be in the middle of the desert where there is little water, but this stuff is 10 times better than beach sand. It is comfortable to walk on barefoot and cool in the morning beneath your feet. It compacts easily and stays compacted even when dry. The grains are incredibly fine and white as white can be. Where we were watching the balloons is considered the park's public playground. Here there are thousands of acres of uninterrupted sand dunes that stretch out in every direction from the parking lot. Ben and I hauled out his Frisbee and had a blast just throwing the disk for all it was worth without fear of hitting anyone or anything with it. Ben also found the dunes are great for rolling down log-roll style.

The balloon launch petered out quickly as none of the pilots wanted to fly very far and risk having to walk their gear back to the launch site. Vehicles aren't allowed to drive on the dunes, which is understandable but sort of disappointing for off-road enthusiasts. We decided to move on and check out the gift shop at park headquarters before heading back to town in search of a more filling meal. The breakfast care packages from the hotel weren't more than a snack. We looked at the rest of the park from the car. There are several nature trails, but none of us was in the mood to walk on them. As it was, we didn't get to visit the park museum because it was already 10:30 and we were starving. Back in Alamogordo we stopped for lunch at a Mexican-American diner called Ramona's. It wasn't anything to write home about, but the food was OK. At under $20, it was also one of the cheapest meals we've had on our trip.

After lunch we went exploring, heading up into the hills where we discovered the New Mexico Museum of Space History. It was mainly a tribute to rocket science and the men and women who have pioneered space exploration. It was cheap entertainment at $2.50 for adults and $2 for Ben. There were a few interactive exhibits; Ben and I both figured out how to crash-land the Space Shuttle in the flight simulator, for instance. There were replicas of rockets used to launch satellites and deliver people into space. Very interesting. Outside there is a courtyard featuring exhibits of various ancient space junk. There is also an IMAX theater, but we passed on the film about undersea volcanoes.

It was close to 3 p.m. and we had already put in a full day, much of it spent in 90 degree heat. Ben was antsy to get back to the hotel and so were we. We dropped off Roni's and Ben's film at a Walgreen's store and then returned to the hotel where I cleaned off the camera cards and tried to make sense of my out-of-control postcard collection. I discovered about 15 duplicates of cards I'd bought twice because I couldn't remember whether or not I had them. I think I must have Alzheimer's. I'm usually not that bad with postcards. Roni and Ben went swimming in the sauna pool for about 10 minutes. Then Roni did the laundry while I attempted to take a nap. It had been a long day and I was wiped out. But we still had more planned for evening.

As part of the balloon invitational there is something called a balloon glow that was scheduled for this evening at Alamogordo High School. Roni found out about it somehow and thought it sounded like fun, so we decided to check it out after dinner. We'd promised Ben that we'd eat dinner at the Sonic Drive-In, so we did that about a quarter to 6 before heading back to Walgreen's to pick up Roni's film. Then we headed over to the high school — "Home of the Fighting Tigers" as the sign near the football stadium proclaimed — where we sat in the car for a few minutes looking at the photos from earlier in the trip. Roni's camera is working very well and she got some excellent shots at White Sands and Saguaro National Park. Ben also has been doing a good job with Roni's old point-and-shoot. Sort of makes me nostalgic for the good old days of film cameras. But certainly not for the price — it cost about $50 to have seven rolls developed today.

The balloon glow turned out to be not what any of us expected. I'd always thought it was where the balloons inflate and are then lit inside like luminaria. That's what Roni thought too. This event was set up like a concert in which a dozen or so balloonists sat in their bare gondolas down on the football field and cranked up their propane jets (or whatever fuel they use) in time with a selection of patriotic music. It was very colorful in the dark, but we all had seen enough after about 15 minutes. Ben didn't like the heat from the jets, even though we were sitting several feet back in the bleachers. I can't blame him. Who needs more heat on an evening with the temperature in the mid-80s?

We're all very tired tonight. This marks the first time this trip that we are staying in the same hotel two consecutive nights. We'll get to do it again tomorrow when we head to Santa Fe. I'm happy to shut this thing down early and try to recoup some of the sleep I lost this morning.