Today was a day to remember. The main reason we were in Albuquerque was to attend the Albuquerque International Balloon Festival. What an experience! We were up early and caught a bus to the field at 6:10 am. The field was already mobbed. We walked out amongst the crowds and the balloons which were soon to be launched. In a period of less than two hours over 500 balloons launched. They call it the Mass Ascension. We wandered around taking photos. I had my 7D Mk2 with the 24-105 lens and the 5D Mk3 with the 100-400. That combination was perfect. I had a Black Rapid DR-1 double strap so I could have both cameras at the ready. It worked out very well. I had never used it before.

Seeing 500 balloons in the air was astonishing. They were of all sorts of shapes and colors. There were quite a few ride balloons which took maybe 10-15 people aloft. All of the launch activity takes place in an area where the bystanders can stand right there and watch it happen. This is a big one that is now off the bucket list.