On the last day of this year’s Snowmass Balloon Festival, after the skies cleared, dozens of colorful hot air balloons launched into Snowmass Village airspace. It was part of the festival’s 50th anniversary celebration.
“It's beautiful,” Colleen Johnson, the festival’s balloon meister, said. “And it’s the oldest festival in Colorado.”
Johnson has been the balloon meister for the past 15 years. She invites the pilots, organizes their stays in town and ensures safety at the festival.
But she’s retiring this year.
“I was driving down here this morning thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, this is my last hurrah,’” she said. “It is sad. It’s really sad.”
For Johnson’s last hurrah, the festival was almost cancelled.
Extreme drought in the Roaring Fork Valley triggered fire restrictions in early September, prompting flight restrictions. Organizers worried that vehicles chasing the balloons could have sparked a brush fire in the tall grasses.
Even though restrictions were lifted on the first day of the festival, wind and rain grounded the balloons again for Friday and Saturday.
Finally, on Sunday morning, conditions improved and balloons were allowed to take off.
“We’re so blessed that we got to fly today because I was iffy,” Johnson said.
A brief history
According to an old newspaper article from the Aspen Historical Society, hot air balloons were first introduced in the Roaring Fork Valley during an event called Interski in 1968.
Connie Wolf, a leading hot air balloonist at that time, came to teach attendees how to fly.
Shortly after, the festival officially kicked off in 1975 and was called Balloon Fest in its early years.
While inviting a woman to teach was unique at the time, Aspen Historical Society Curator Lisa Hancock said the Roaring Fork Valley is known for its firsts, including Elizabeth Paepcke’s commitment to the Aspen Idea and establishing the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies.
“We do have so many stories like that that are innovative or groundbreaking,” she said.
Today, 34 balloons take off from Snowmass Village’s Town Park each year, where hot chocolate and coffee keep patrons warm during the early fall mornings.
The balloons can land anywhere in town: on Brush Creek Road, at the Snowmass Club Golf Course or in a random field.
Snowmass Tourism’s Sara Stookey Sanchez said the festival has remained largely unchanged in its 50 years, which is part of the appeal.
“The beauty of this is it’s super classic,” she said. “I think it’s one of those traditions that doesn’t change very much and therein lies its simplicity.”
Stookey Sanchez has attended the festival for a decade. The Night Glow, where balloon pilots inflate their balloons on the first night, has been one of the only major changes to the schedule. Attendees walk around the inflated, lit up balloons, and it’s her favorite event of the weekend.
“It’s such a spectacular scene with the balloons glowing against the backdrop,” Stookey Sanchez said.
Hot air balloon community
Johnson said the hot air balloon community is small, but pilots come from all over the U.S. — from New Mexico to Arizona to Nebraska and Kentucky.
“The ballooning community is super tight,” she said. “You’ll see other pilots going over to help pilots take their balloon down, but — you know — (there’s) a lot of gray hair.”
While Johnson is sad to leave her leadership role as balloon meister, she is excited to engage with the community in a new way.
For her last 15 years in Snowmass, she has been supporting other pilots. By stepping back, Johnson will be back in the air herself, and she is excited to share the experience with others.
“You want to share the joy of flight,” Johnson said. “Just watching all the people in the crowds and everybody having fun is amazing.”
Johnson is looking forward to handing over the reins to her successor next year, coming back to Snowmass Village and flying over the Elk Mountains — pending weather and fire restrictions.
