Fernwood Offers Timber and Balloon Fest Pocono Weekend Packages

Lumberjacks and hot air balloons unite to create one mega Autumn happening at Shawnee Mountain Ski Area for a fall Timber and Balloon Festival held October 16 - 18.

Bushkill, PA (Vocus/PRWEB ) September 29, 2009 -- Lumberjacks and hot air balloons unite to create one mega Autumn happening at Shawnee Mountain Ski Area for a fall Timber and Balloon Festival held October 16 - 18. Gina Bertucci, spokesperson for Fernwood, a Bushkill Falls hotel, said, "This is "the" fall event in the Pocono Mountains that combines the beauty of hot air balloons with the day-long schedule of lumberjack events, crafts and entertainment."

The Pocono Mountains form the picturesque fall foliage backdrop for a weekend full of family friendly entertainment, music, food, lumberjack events and colorful hot air balloon launches. Special weekend packages include a hotel room or villa and two tickets to the Timber & Balloon Festival starting from just $159 a night. Bertucci continues, "This festival has something for everyone. Combined with our special accommodation pricing, it is a perfect way to see the spectacular fall colors on a fall weekend getaway."

Fernwood Hotel and Resort offers hotel and fully-equipped villa accommodations on its 440-acre resort with an 18 hole par 71 golf course, themed restaurants, live entertainment, indoor pools, daily activities, a video game area, fitness center, canoeing on the Delaware River, and a full selection of nearby activities. For Lumberjack Balloon package or other Pocono packages information go to FernwoodHotel.com or call 888-FERNWOOD (888-337-6966). Fernwood is located just minutes from Shawnee Mountain on Route 209 in Bushkill, PA. Bertucci concludes, "Enjoy a full day at the Festival then return to Fernwood, a Bushkill Falls hotel, to relax, have dinner, play a round of golf, take a swim in the indoor pool or enjoy a show. We recommend booking early, because the word is definitely out about how special this weekend in the Poconos has become."

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Up, up and away

Hot-air balloons fill the sky over White Sands


Most men of retirement age consider an early-morning tee time to be the perfect way to start a day.

Bob Mass, of Albuquerque, isn't one of them.

"This is my weekend golf," said Mass, who pilots a hot-air balloon named Pita's Kiss. "That's what I tell folks. I try to do it every weekend, just like a golfer tries to go golfing every weekend."

Mass piloted his balloon early Saturday morning above White Sands National Monument's gypsum sand dunes during the 18th annual White Sands Balloon Invitational.

The balloon festival is the only time Holloman Air Force Base and White Sands Missile Range allow their airspace to be used. All balloons must be grounded by noon.

That's just fine with Mass, who spent four years as an airman at Holloman, piloting T-38s.

"Aviation's been in my blood for 40-something years now," he said. "I picked up ballooning after I got out of the Air Force as a way to keep air under my butt."

Threatening clouds hovered over White Sands National Monument for much of the morning before the sun rose over the Sacramento Mountains as many crews prepared their respective balloons for flight.

Thick clouds later gave way to clear blue skies as the morning progressed.

"I think the conditions turned out very well," Mass said. "We flew for more than an hour. We had a great time."

Gary Smith and his wife, Judy Thompson, both of Las Cruces, said they enjoyed watching the balloons early Saturday.

"We just wanted to get out, have a picnic and see the balloons," Smith said. "We've done it for a number of years when the balloons fly. It's a good thing to see on an early morning in New Mexico."

"I just wish I had $1 for every camera I see out here," he added.

"The White Sands Balloon Invitational is the best one I've ever seen because of the white sand," Thompson said. "I mean, what better backdrop can you have? I may come back (Sunday) morning, if I can get (Gary) out of bed."

About 52 hot-air balloons registered for this year's event. Half of the crews lifted off from White Sands National Monument while the other half took flight from Alamogordo.

Mass said ballooning is a great way to meet people.

"It's a community sport," he said. "You can't do it by yourself. You must have a crew. For some reason, people seem to be attracted by balloons. Whenever I land, there are a bunch of folks who will come over and want to help and be a part of it."

Piloting a balloon also provides for some excitement.

"You never know where you're going to end up," he said. "You go where the wind takes you. The only thing you can control is going up or down. I got about 1,500 feet off the ground, but I've been up to 10,000 feet above mean sea level. Here, that would be about 6,000 feet off the ground."

Brian Hodges, of Las Cruces, said he grew up in Alamogordo, but never ventured to White Sands National Monument to see the balloons take flight.

"We always used to watch them from our house," he said. "I wanted to see them up close."

Hodges brought his wife, Heather, and 1-year-old son, John, to the balloon festival.

"We wanted John to see the balloons," he said. "We've lived in this area for much of our lives, but this is the first time he's seen them."

Hodges said he was impressed by the spectacle put on by the balloons.

"It's really cool," he said. "They're so graceful. It's really neat the way they take off. They move faster than I thought they would move."

"This is amazing," said Heather Hodges, who also enjoyed her first balloon festival visit. "I've lived here for 14 years and this is my first time coming out to see them."

Brian wasn't too sure about taking a balloon ride. He prefers to keep his feet on the ground.

"I'm afraid of heights," he said. "Being in a wicker basket high above the ground just doesn't do anything for me."

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Up, up and away in our beautiful balloons

The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta draws hundreds of thousands of visitors to Balloon Fiesta Park each year.



ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Gliding over the sere New Mexico landscape, ochre-colored desert melding with ochre-colored houses, I envision the first hot-air balloon flight more than two centuries ago. It must have been an otherworldly sight: a rooster, duck and sheep lifting off in front of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, and soaring over the streets of Paris.

It's a far cry from today, when a woman puttering in her backyard pauses to wave at the gaggle of brightly colored balloons swooping over her Albuquerque home.

For our group, it's a sneak peek ahead of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, when hundreds of hot-air balloons of all shapes and sizes will fill the skies Oct. 3-11. Try to imagine a balloon with all the colors of the rainbow lifting off next to two yellow-and-black-striped honeybees rising in tandem, next to the menacing helmet of Darth Vader. It's a spectacle that draws hundreds of thousands of visitors to Balloon Fiesta Park each year.

TAKE OFF

On the chilly spring morning of our flight, passengers gathered on the barren lots of an undeveloped subdivision, waiting to learn if the winds were calm enough for us to ascend. The day before, our flights were canceled because of brisk breezes.

This morning we got the green light, so the groups scattered around the five massive balloon envelopes spread out on the ground. The burner was turned on, and a fan blew hot air into the envelope, which slowly rose from the ground as it filled.

Our group scrambled into a gondola manned by Mike Collins, senior pilot for Rainbow Ryders -- the only hot-air balloon company allowed to take visitors on flights during the Balloon Fiesta.

As the heat from the burner filled the envelope, we slowly rose from the ground, joining the other rainbow-hued balloons already in the air. Floating on the wind currents, we crossed over highways and homes, swimming pools and schools. Dogs barked ferociously as we passed overhead, and in one yard a rabbit skittered to safety.

The pilots steered us over the still-brown trees and brushed along the banks of the Rio Grande River, skimming over treetops and setting marsh birds and Canada geese to flight. One pilot briefly dipped the bottom of the gondola basket into the river's waters, and droplets poured down as the balloon ascended again.

In the distance, we saw the ancient volcanoes of Petroglyph National Monument, where we had walked the day before.

Eventually, the pilots began scouting for a place to land, and we touched down in a vacant field, where chase crews from Rainbow Ryders helped us disembark.

BALLOON CITY

Albuquerque's roots as a haven for hot-air ballooning stretch back more than a century, when a local barkeep launched a balloon from the center of town, soaring up to 14,000 feet before touching down several miles away.

But ballooning didn't move into the mainstream until 1972, when the city's first festival showcased 13 hot-air balloons. These days it draws more than 700.

With ballooning, weather is key, and the city is known for the ``Albuquerque Box,'' where the wind blows north at one elevation and south at another, allowing pilots to launch their balloons, fly, then turn around and touch down near the launch site.

More than 300 balloonists live in Albuquerque -- topping any other state -- and the first flights across both the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans had New Mexicans as key team members. Ben Abruzzo and Maxie Anderson -- for whom the local balloon museum is named -- were part of the first team to fly across the Atlantic Ocean, crossing the water in the Double Eagle II gas balloon in 1978. The pair was then part of a team that crossed the Pacific in Double Eagle V just three years later.

The history of hot-air ballooning is on vivid display at the Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum, which opened in 2005.

One exhibit spotlights that gravity-defying feat of 1783, when the rooster, duck and sheep were sent aloft. The first manned flight came just two months later.

Since those early years, hot-air balloons have been used not only for adventure and pleasure, but also in times of war. Balloons were used to get information out of the city during the siege of Paris in the 1870s, and for observing the enemy during the Civil War.

And museum curator of collections Marilee Schmit Nason shares a fact that perhaps few know. Japan launched thousands of incendiary balloons, known as the Fu-Go, at the United States during World War II. The balloon bombs, which floated across the Pacific Ocean, were designed to wreak havoc in the United States. About 1,000 were estimated to have reached U.S. shores, but they landed in winter in places like Washington and Oregon, and most simply fizzled out.

Other exhibits spotlight death-defying feats, such as Air Force Col. Joseph Kittinger's jump out of the Excelsior III at 102,800 feet, free falling for 4 ½ minutes before opening his parachute.

There's also Kittinger's balloon, Rosie O'Grady, used for the first solo Atlantic flight, and the Double Eagle V, which Anderson, Abruzzo and others used to cross the Pacific.

During the Balloon Fiesta, there's plenty happening outside the museum's doors, including a chainsaw carving championship, with artists transforming pieces of wood into astounding sculptures. Two nights are capped off with concerts -- one this year featuring country star Josh Gracin, and the other 1950s rock 'n' rollers, the Coasters.

But the balloons are the main attraction. Each morning, they ascend en masse, and competitions are held throughout the festival, such as balloon races and tests of ballooning skills. As night descends, there are balloon glows, with all the tethered balloons illuminated against the dark, and fireworks to cap off the daily events.

And of course there's always the chance to be part of the sea of balloons sailing through Albuquerque's crisp blue skies, waving at the tens of thousands of spectators gathered below.

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Weather makes for ideal conditions at Lincoln Art and Balloon Festival

LINCOLN -- Sunshine and cool temperatures Saturday made for a perfect day for art and hot air balloon enthusiasts attending the Lincoln Art and Balloon Festival.

While only a handful of balloons were able to launch Friday night, on Saturday early morning festival goers were able to see the balloons fly into the Logan County Airport. One of those enjoying the view from the sky was Lincoln Mayor Keith Snyder, who received a "great surprise" when he was asked early Saturday morning to help crew and then ride in the "Travelin Lite" balloon piloted by Max Mitchell, the only pilot who has flown in each of the balloon festival's 21 years.

The view of Lincoln from a hot air balloon is "beautiful," according to Snyder, who described the scenery as "green fields" and "lots of trees."

A few hours later, with his feet firmly planted on a street near Latham Park, Snyder helped cut the ribbon to open the festival. Art enthusiasts then filled the sidewalks to view what Art Festival Co-Coordinator, Marty Ahrends described as a diverse mixture of art -- including stained glass, pottery, photography and even spray paint art.

At Cindy and Kirby Pringle's "Dogtown Artworks" booth, art lovers were treated to humorous "dog-people photographs." The husband-and-wife team combines photos of their two dogs, Barney and Buster, with those of human models, creating "dog people."

The idea began seven years ago, when Cindy took a photo of Kirby Pringle dressed in his bathrobe. She then replaced his head in the photo, with a photo of the head of their dog, and made it into a greeting card.

"I looked better with a dog head, so we kept it up," he said. After selling hand-colored black and white photos for many years prior to that, "our business went to the dogs," Cindy said.

Many of the photos feature Buster, a white boxer, with various items in his mouth--like ice cream cones, wax lips, fish, and spaghetti. Buster, known by the name Earl in the Pringles' works, has "great self-control," according to Kirby, and doesn't eat the items used in the photographs.

The Pringles are also selling two books featuring the dogs, aimed at adults and children. In one book, Barney, their boxer-mix who portrays Pearl, has to work hard to overcome an addiction to her bone phone and iPaw.

Besides laughing over the adventures of Earl and Pearl, children attending the Art Festival can create something of their own at the Children's Art Fair. For a $5 fee, options include tie-dye, making a 3-D hot air balloon or creating a food art project.

The hot air balloon activities concluded Saturday, but the art fair continues Sunday.

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Up, Up, and Away At New York State's Hot Air Balloon Fest

If you’ll be chilling in upstate New York this Labor Day weekend, you may want to consider a little more action than just chowing down a couple of white hots off the grill. The New York State Festival of Balloons is taking place all weekend in Dansville, and it’s only about an hour south of Rochester. There will be plenty of food, arts and crafts, entertainment, and a huge amount of hot air balloons. You can even camp right at the festival in case you get stuck with overnight balloon duty.

To celebrate their 28th year running, organizers will kick things off on September 3 with their Thursday Night Balloon Glow. Swing by the town’s municipal airport to see the balloons fire up their burners and watch them shine in the night sky. Maybe if you’re lucky you can sweet-talk a pilot into a free ride over the weekend.

Over 35,000 balloon fans usually come to check out the festival, and this year you can be one of the masses for only a $5 admission fee. Your ticket will get you into the festival grounds to see the balloons take off, and there’s even a car show worth strolling around. This festival is a cool way to spend at least part of your holiday weekend—just be sure to pack a spare digital camera battery, because everyone loves pictures of hot air balloons.

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This weekend: Balloons and Tunes - Grove City, Ohio

If you have ever wanted to ride in a hot air balloon, this weekend is your chance. Grove City, Ohio, just outside of Columbus, will be holding Balloons and Tunes, a festival celebrating hot air balloons. The Central Ohio Balloon Club will be providing an opportunity to learn all about hot air ballooning and even a chance to ride in an actual hot air balloon. Both full rides and tethered rides will be available. Balloon ascensions are scheduled for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday evenings as well as Saturday and Sunday mornings.

If you are the type that enjoys the beauty of watching hot air balloons, but would not, necessarily, enjoy a ride in one, there will be plenty of other family friendly activities to do, including a climbing wall, inflatables, a rope course, shows, and crafts. Live music will also be featured through out the weekend. Lots of food and beverage vendors will also be on hand.

Festival Info: Hours – Friday 3:00 pm to 10:00 pm, Saturday 11:00 am to 10:00 pm, Sunday 11:00 am to 7:00 pm. Admission - $5, children under 5 are free. Parking is $5. Rock climbing wall $5. Ropes course $6. All day inflatables admission $8. Visit Real Adventure Hot Air Balloon Co. for hot air balloon ride prices and details.

Location: Beulah Park – 3811 Southwest Blvd. Grove City, Ohio 43123

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Skydiving, ballooning and flying in the northeast

Man has daydreamed of flying since he first spied birds in the sky. Short of booking a flight on a commercial airplane, there are few opportunities for regular folks to defy gravity.

But if you know where to look here in the Northeast, there are some opportunities to get a bird's-eye view of the most magical landscapes on the planet.

Sure, you could access Google Earth and get some idea of what you'd see, but there's nothing like the elation of actual elevation.

THINGS TO KNOW

For most of us, flying, floating and gliding are once-in-a-lifetime experiences. For that reason, we've included only places where you can reserve a guided trip with all equipment provided.

Although your actual session may last only a few minutes, expect to attend a pre-flight training and safety session. Liability waivers also are standard practice. Since many flight experiences are dependent on weather and availability, you'll want to discuss cancellation and rescheduling policies with the operators before you commit to a trip.

TAKE A DIVE

Seemingly spinning and falling into oblivion, you feel the wind whipping your cheeks till, whoosh, the parachute opens and you're floating. "It's the only time in my life when I can't answer my cell phone, Facebook, Twitter - no one can contact me when I'm falling at 120 miles per hour," says avid sky diver and founder of Help A Reporter Out, Peter Shankman. "When the chute deploys and things slow down dramatically, the first thing you notice is the quiet. Your senses are heightened. The air smells cleaner."

Sky-dive The Ranch, Gardiner, N.Y., 845-255-4033, skydivetheranch.com; COST $195 for a tandem jump

The ground looks like computer circuitry beneath you as you lunge from the plane. You're in free fall from 13,500 to 6,000 feet. No worries - you've trained on the ground for 40 minutes and are attached to an expert sky diver who will pull the cord at just the right time.

Fun Sky Diving, Danielson, Conn., 860-774-5867, funskydiving.com, COST From $189

Sixteen- and 17-year-olds are now allowed to jump tandem with instructors, making this a perfect family outing for those who have those tough-to-please older teens with thrill-seeking genes.

SkyVenture Indoor Skydiving, Nashua, N.H., 603-897-0002, skyventurenh.com, COST $48 for 2 minutes to $800 for 60 minutes

For those who yearn to experience sky diving but are afraid of heights, technology has caught up with your desires. A state-of-the-art wind tunnel allows you to stay afloat and it replicates the act of free-falling so accurately, sky diving teams practice their synchronized routines here.

I'LL GET YOU, RED BARON

Back in the 1920s, teams of pilots would land near barns on rural farms and request to use fields as runways from which to stage air shows and offer plane rides. Known as barnstormers, these stuntmen would draw townsfolk to their performances, ever-perfecting the spins, dives and barrel rolls that would come to define their particular brand of entertainment. These days, you can still take a spin in a vintage biplane.

Rhinebeck Aerodrome, Rhinebeck, N.Y., 845-752-3200, oldrhinebeck.org, COST $65

The Aerodrome has been pulling not only townsfolk, but a greater number of international travelers to watch vintage biplanes in action. For a reasonable $65, you can fly from the Aerodrome's airstrip to the Hudson River and back. But even if you don't want to ascend in an open-cockpit 4-seater 1929 New Standard D-25, the Aerodrome is worth a drive to watch authentic WWI planes and barnstormers perform aerial maneuvers and mock dogfights.

Summit Scenic Flights, Lancaster, N.H., 603-915-3438, summitscenicflights.com, COST $220 for two people, 30 minutes.

Soar above the highest mountain peak in the United States - Mt. Washington - in a reproduced 1934 YMF5 WACO biplane. Wearing leather helmets and goggles fuels the fantasy that you may very well cross paths with a WWII Flying Ace.

Owl's Head Transportation Museum, Owl's Head, Maine, 207-594-4418, ohtm.org, COST $95 in '78 Piper Cub, $200 in '41 Stearman (members only).

Plumes of water smashing against the cliffs of craggy headlands pass beneath you like a moving postcard. This scenic flight is so popular, it is offered as a thank-you for museum volunteers - making it well worth the $40 membership fee to buy a ticket.

WARM AIR RISING

One of the most surprising aspects of flying in a hot-air balloon is how utterly quiet and serene it is. You expect loud rushes of wind, and instead feel a beguiling sense of calm as, unencumbered by earthly physics, you see the most stunning panoramas. Rides generally last about an hour, although inflation, landing and - in most cases - celebratory Champagne can stretch the experience to three hours.

Red Rose Balloons, Canton Center, Conn., 860-693-6903, redroseballoon.com, COST $300 a person

Romantically named after the first guest and often called upon for "proposal flights," Red Rose takes only two at a time, in a flaming red balloon, above the verdant, rolling hills of upstate Connecticut.

A&a Balloon Rides, Salem, N.H., 877-262-8441, balloonridesnh.com, COST $200 a person

Enamored of flying at a young age, but extremely sensitive to motion sickness, Andre Boucher discovered on his inaugural balloon flight 20 years ago that this form of flying did not make him ill. He was hooked enough to make flying hot-air balloons a full-time vocation and now governs the "Bearship" - a teddy-bear-adorned balloon that always elicits pointing and waving from those on terra firma.

Balloons of Vermont, Quechee, Vt., 802-291-4887, balloonsofvermont.com, COST $265 a person

Rising peacefully over Quechee Gorge, you'll thrill to white water - without getting wet - near the workshop of world-renowned glassmaker Simon Pearce.

Above Realty Inc., Jericho, Vt., 877-386-7473, balloonvermont.com, COST $265

Drift over cows grazing in lush pastures and the luminous water of Lake Champlain, nearly brushing mountainside treetops before coming in for a gentle landing.

U.S. Hot Air Balloon, Bird-in-Hand, Pa., 800-763-5987, ushotairballoon.com, COST $174 a person

Quilt-like fields and Amish farmhouses unfold below you as you float on placid breezes. Savor Amish Country from a very different perspective.

GLIDING

Towed up via noisy prop plane and then released, you'll find riding in a glider is a bit like sky diving, though you're snug in the cockpit of a plane, albeit a tiny one without engines. Here are several places to tag along with an experienced glider pilot, who will gauge your stomach for excitement and ride the thermals to your taste.

Stowe Soaring, Morrisville, Vt., 800-898-7845, stowesoaring.com, COST $99 (for a 10-minute taste) to $199 (for a 40-minute thrill)

These rare gliders can accommodate two riders in addition to the pilot. According to owner Don Post, "Besides being able to enjoy the experience with a friend, the views are fantastic - the Green Mountains, Lake Champlain and the Adirondacks, and the White Mountains in New Hampshire. After the tow, gliding is quiet - just the sound of the wind - and is really an amazing experience."

Franconia Soaring, Franconia, N.H., 603-823-5034, franconiasoaring.org, COST $100 for 15 minutes, $150 for 35 minutes

Considered some of the best ridge and thermal soaring in the Northeast, this company will have you fly eye to eye with eagles and hawks as you pass over alluring mountain summits and the Appalachian Trail.

Harris Hill Soaring, Elmira, N.Y., 607-734-0641, harrishillsoaring.org, COST $70-$80

Children and 90-year-olds have chosen to fly from this popular airport that also houses the definitive Museum of Soaring. Skimming over Watkins Glen and Seneca Lake, you'll enjoy this graceful way to absorb the beauty of the Finger Lakes region.

OTHER WAYS TO FLY

Summit Air Sports, Hang Gliding, Bellefonte, Pa., 814-571-1745, summitairsports.net, COST $130 for one tandem flight

Hang gliding seems to have been devised by those who wished to cling to kites when they went aloft. Here, you'll be amply rewarded by expansive views of the Susquehanna River from a hang-gliding hangout at Hyner View State Park.

New York Trapeze School, Manhattan, 212-242-TSNY, newyork.trapezeschool.com, COST $47-$65 per class

It's all about facing fear, harnessing the power of your own body and letting go. Wizards of the swinging bars take you through your first jump - from a 23-foot perch - to the ultimately gratifying experience of release and catch. If you are like many who go just for a taste, you'll end up signing on for subsequent classes right then and there.

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