My wife, Tia, and I got up early on Saturday morning to try to catch the hot air balloons doing their target competition.  The competition was to be held at 7:00 am the local primary school, but when we pulled in at 7:10 people were already leaving.  Obviously, we were concerned and had some questions like, "I told you not to take so long getting ready..."  Ok, so that's not a question and I didn't really blame it on her.  Come to find out, the weather wasn't suitable for balloon flight; it was too windy.  So there we were, 7:30 am, and the gates to the expo for the festival events didn't open until 10.   

Snapping turtleThis little girl was fascinated by all the underwater creatures, particularly, the turtles.

With two and a half hours to kill we decided to get some breakfast and come up with a coffee.  I substituted the word 'plan' with the word 'coffee' because that's about all that was on my mind at that point.  So, we found ourselves at Jumonville's Bakery (I wish I had a link, but they don't seem to have a website) eating Kolachi, donuts and, yes, coffee.

We had a choice, the outlet mall or the Cabela's store.  Well, that was a no-brainer, for me anyway.  We spent the next hour or so window shopping at Cabela's and checking out their displays.  

One of the exhibits was an aquarium filled with all kinds of fish and turtle; from soft shells and snapping turtles to catfish and bluegill.  It was a really neat exhibit allowing people to get an up close look at some of the underwater wildlife from the wildlife's perspective.  

Boy ScoutsA boy scout listening to and automated recording about the great outdoors. Another exhibit showed off trophy game animals from all over the US.  These, of course, were not living.  They boasted mounts of monster bucks, mule deer, alligators, and a variety of rodents, cats and antelope, to name a few.  The exhibit was being narrated by an 'old man' (not real) that looked like he may have come from the taxidermist as well.  I did find it interesting, however, there was boy scout enjoying the great outdoors exhibit.  

   From Cabela's we continued our 13 hour day of balloons and headed to the expo where all the festivities took place.  We saw car show, a BBQ cook-off, a craft show, we ate funnel cakes, jambalaya, and gator on a stick.  But, we still hadn't seen a hot air balloon.  It wasn't until almost 3 o' clock in the afternoon the tethered balloon ride started setting up.  Finally a balloon!

The Young BoyThis generous young boy offered us a place to sit and gummy snacks! We graciously declined, but next time the gummies are mine. ;)

We went to find a place to sit when I heard a small voice, in a big way, say "Do you want to share a spot with us?!"  That tickled me, but I politely said no.  We sat close though and watched the balloon inflate.  Then, "Do you want a gummy?!"  I think I LOL'd at that point (Yes, I used that acronym, but don't act like you didn't understand).

The balloon rides didn't last long.  After being blown into the on-looking crowd, they decided it was too windy to even fly tethered 15 feet off the ground.  Well, now what.  We have spent 8 hours waiting to see hot air balloons and the buzz news is that it's too windy for the balloons to even do their nightly "glow".  What's a balloon festival without balloons?  Well, carnival games, rides, food, BBQ, car shows, craft shows, live music, beer, and sunshine.

No Big DealThis boy nonchalantly watched the balloons inflate

Then...just when we thought we wouldn't see any more balloons, from the stage we heard, "Ladies and gentlemen, the weather has broken and in just a few minutes 30 balloons will be arriving!"   And almost before he could finish, 30 vehicles with balloons in tow showed up and started setting up everywhere.  All different shapes and colors and patterns; everyone was so excited!  The balloon rides started again and next thing you know there was exactly 30 balloons inflated and on display for everyone to enjoy.  Cameras were everywhere: in front of us, behind us, on the ground, in the sky, capturing every move from every angle.  To me, that was a show in itself.

   We didn't stick around for the fireworks, so our night ended with the traditional balloon glow.  On the signal, all the balloon pilots would light up their balloon at the same time.  It was quite a spectacle.  My wife's favorite was "the twinkle" where pilots randomly flickered their flames together.  

Overall, it was a great day at the balloon festival.  Only being in Louisiana for 1 year doesn't give us a lot of time or second chances for things like this, so I was very grateful that my wife and I were able to experience this together and I hope there will be many more to come. 

Thanks for reading and be sure to check out my new photo "Down on the Bayou" in the Landscapes gallery!!

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All GlowJust a few of the 30 balloons doing their "all glow"