Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta
It began in Albuquerque, New Mexico with 13 balloons and 20,000 spectators in 1972. Now, it is a ten-day festival with upwards of 100,000 spectators a day (at the park or launch field) and countless others at observations sites around the city and surrounding area. The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is a yearly gathering of hot air balloon enthusiasts from around the world showcasing nearly 750 balloons from the United States and from around the world. They launch the balloons from the 78-acre launch field (about the size of 54 football fields) at the 365-acre Balloon Fiesta Park north of Albuquerque. It is the most photographed annual event in the world.
The mornings begin with the Dawn Patrol, a group of pilots who take off before sunrise. This gives other pilots the chance to observe current windspeeds and directions. The Dawn Patrol, in addition to checking wind conditions, is looking for the “Albuquerque Box”. The cool October mornings in Albuquerque create a predictable set of wind patterns that make it easier for the pilots to navigate their balloons in this vertical box. Balloons ascend from the launch park, move south, ascend higher, move north, and so on, either descending or repeating. After the Dawn Patrol is the Mass Ascensions, when all participating balloons launch in two waves.
Other special flights include the Flight of the Nations, which honors all the countries represented at the Fiesta. The America’s Challenge is a long distance race starting from Balloon Fiesta Park, flying about three days, and landing usually as far away as the east coast. The Special Shape Rodeo showcases the special shape balloons that are at the Balloon Fiesta.
The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta features numerous cultural exhibitions. Concessionaires fill the park selling food, gift items, and souvenirs. The Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum, located on the grounds of Balloon Fiesta Park, offers a historical look at the annual Fiesta and the history of ballooning.
The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta takes place over the course of ten days during the first two weeks of October each year.
Carlsbad Caverns National Park
Beneath the surface of the Chihuahuan Desert and Guadalupe Mountains of southeast New Mexico and west Texas lie hundreds of caves, created by sulfuric acid leaking onto and dissolving the limestone under the surface. The Carlsbad Caverns National Park contains 113 of these known caves. The subterranean chambers reveal beautiful formations along with the stalagmites and stalactites common to caves. Carlsbad Caverns National Park is home to the nation’s deepest limestone cave that descends 1,597 ft below the surface.
The mile long Natural Entrance tour enters the cave at the large historic (and natural) entrance and descends more than 750 ft (or about 75 stories) into the earth on steep and narrow trails. At the end of the descent is the underground rest area, outfitted with elevators. The self-guided Natural Entrance tour features Bat Cave, Devil's Spring, Green Lake Overlook, and the Boneyard, a twisted mass of highly dissolved limestone rock, and Iceberg Rock, a 200,000 ton boulder that fell from the cave ceiling. From the underground rest area is the starting point of the Big Room route, a one-mile, self-guided tour around the perimeter of the largest chamber in the cavern at 25 stories high and one third of a mile wide. This tour passes many famous landmarks including Bottomless Pit, Giant Dome, Rock of Ages, and Painted Grotto. Elevators to the underground rest area provide access to the Big Room. The room is relatively level and well-lit, making it accessible to visitors with limited time or walking difficulties. Most of the Big Room is wheelchair-accessible.
Guided tours include the Kings Palace tour through four chambers in the deepest portion of the cavern that is open to the public, 830 ft below the surface. The Wild Cave Tours are for the adventurous and the physically and mentally fit. Visitors face tough physical challenges such as ladder climbs, pool crossings, tight and twisting crawls, and free climbing. Reservations are required for all guided cave tours. Some tours are limited and fill up quickly so visitors should reserve tickets in advance.
On the surface of the Carlsbad Caverns National Park, there is plenty for any outdoor enthusiast to do. The Carlsbad Caverns Wilderness Area is 33,000 acres of desert and woodlands, depending on the elevation. Backcountry camping, hiking, and wildlife viewing are popular ways of enjoying the time at the park. One of the top attractions is watching the Mexican free-tail bats leave the cave at dusk. The hundreds of thousands of fluttering bats leaving en masse every night for food is a spectacular sight.
Carlsbad Caverns National Park is home to two historic districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places—the Cavern Historic District and the Rattlesnake Springs Historic District. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built many of the structures at the park. From 1938-1942, they constructed residences, offices, and rock walls, dug ditches and constructed roads, and quarried rocks and made adobe bricks. Carlsbad Caverns National Park is open daily year round and is closed on Christmas.
Santa Fe
The city of Santa Fe in northern New Mexico has a storied history going back centuries. Established in 1610, Santa Fe is the oldest capital city in the United States. However, long before the European settlers discovered this area, the Pueblo culture had made this place their home. This ancient city rests at the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. It’s real name is "La Villa Real de la Santa Fe de San Francisco de Asis", or "The Royal City of the Holy Faith of Saint Francis of Assisi". It’s called “Santa Fe” (the Holy Faith) for short. It was under Spanish rule from 1598-1810, under Mexico from 1810-1848, after which it became United States territory and eventually was incorporated into the state of New Mexico.
Built by the Spaniards, the popular trend in city planning in the late 1500s was to lay the city out around a central plaza. On the north end of the plaza, the Palace of the Governors was placed and at the east end was built the church that was to become the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi. Over the course of time and into the 20th Century, Santa Fe had become “Americanized” and lost its distinct identity. When New Mexico became a state, the capital of Santa Fe looked like just like any old city. After that, a unified building style was imposed, and the Spanish Pueblo Revival defined Santa Fe’s distinct look. Strict building, landscaping, and zoning codes protect the uniqueness of Santa Fe, and keeps alive the unique mix of the Pueblo, Spanish, and Anglo cultures.
Santa Fe is an artsy town and is known worldwide for its many museums, including the Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture, the Museum of International Folk Art, the Georgia O’ Keeffe Museum, the Museum of Spanish Colonial Art, the Institute of American Indian Arts Museum, the Rancho de las Golondrinas (living history museum with real animals), and the Santa Fe Children’s Museum. Santa Fe is home to the third largest concentration of art galleries, behind New York and Los Angeles, and the galleries highlight contemporary Southwestern, indigenous American, experimental art, old Russian, Taos Masters, and Native American. The Santa Fe Opera productions and the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, both occurring in the summer, are big attractions to the area. Most of Santa Fe’s attractions are located within the historic downtown area, within easy walking distance.
One of the top historic sites in Santa Fe is the Loretto Chapel, the first Gothic structure west of the Mississippi. Completed in 1882, the 25-ft wide structure lacked a staircase between the first floor and the choir loft. A mysterious man equipped only with a donkey and a tool chest built a spiral staircase with no center support and no nails. The source of the wood (and the type) is unknown. The man “disappeared” without pay. The Miraculous Staircase, as it is called, has 33 steps and completes two 360-degree turns. The building of the staircase, the man who built it, and the physics of the staircase remain a mystery to this day.
Outdoor enthusiasts find the wilderness surrounding Santa Fe to be ideal for fishing, camping, hunting, hiking, biking, backpacking, and mountain climbing. Winter sports include cross-country or downhill skiing at the Santa Fe Ski Area. White water rafting, kayaking, and wind surfing on the water or golf and tennis on the land and just some of the way to enjoy the typically sunny days in Santa Fe.