Snowmass Balloon Festival & Boycott the Staycation Giveaway

Other posts by MountainMama

Doesn’t this photo just make you giggle? It’s the tallest hot-air balloon in the country: 166 feet (that’s 15 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty). And this humongous Energizer Bunny will be at the 33rd annual Snowmass Balloon Festival, September 12-14, 2008.

The ears on this Energizer Bunny (aka the “Hot Hare Balloon”) are the size of most regular hot-air balloons. This thing is going to dwarf all of the other multi-colored hot-air balloons that will be flying around Snowmass and throughout the Roaring Fork Valley that weekend. It’s truly a spectacle for viewers when the dozens of balloons launch right after sunrise, and hover all together in the sky in the early morning light. Gorgeous!

This beloved annual festival coincides with the Saturday Snowmass Wine Festival: more than 80 wineries are on hand for tastings, and the cool sounds of jazz can be heard throughout Snowmass Village. Add to that some beautiful fall weather in the Colorado Rockies (typically crisp mountain air and bright, sunny days ideal for hiking) and you’ve got yourself a stellar weekend getaway!

And I’ve got a prize that will knock the socks off any reader who’s planning to visit Snowmass, Colorado, this summer or early fall or NEXT summer or early fall: 4 passes to ride the chair-lift up Snowmass Mountain, PLUS 4 passes to the Snowmass Recreation Center.

All you have to do is leave a comment below about your favorite place to visit in Colorado. This random giveaway is not open to any Roaring Fork Valley residents (anyone who lives between Aspen and New Castle; including Redstone and Marble). But if you’re from elsewhere in the state, and planning to visit the Snowmass area soon or next summer, OR you live anywhere in the U.S. and will be in my neck of the woods during the warm-weather months of 2008 or 2009, please feel free to comment. (But if you’re not really going to be able to use these passes, please let someone who can use them win! We’d prefer not to see the passes for sale on eBay or something… make sense?)

Comment until 6 p.m. (EST) Tuesday, August 5, and I’ll announce a winner Wednesday, August 6.

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July 30, 2008 | Filed Under The Cookie Jar 

Comments

29 Responses to “Snowmass Balloon Festival & Boycott the Staycation Giveaway”

  1. sandy says:
    July 30, 2008 at

    oh I really am going next summer- how cool- I love Colorado.We actually go camping and rving! A few years ago we hiked some of the Colorado trails- amazing- just amazing and so beautiful.

  2. Cindy Osborn says:
    July 30, 2008 at

    I love to go to the mountains north of Fairplay around Jefferson Lake.

  3. FELICE says:
    July 30, 2008 at

    Colorado is such a beautiful state to live in. I enjoy Grand Lake a great place to camp and fish.

  4. susan varney says:
    July 30, 2008 at

    mile high stadinm

  5. Lynn A says:
    July 30, 2008 at

    I love hot springs, and love Glenwood Springs.

  6. Diane O says:
    July 30, 2008 at

    My favorite place to visit in Colorado is Snowmass since by brother and sister-in-law have a fabulous vacation home there!

  7. Keith says:
    July 31, 2008 at

    Fancy seeing that in the sky first thing in the morning after a night on the ‘brown fizzy stuff’ :D

  8. R Hicks says:
    July 31, 2008 at

    I STOPPED SMOKING AND SAVE THE MONEY FOR A GREAT VACATION

  9. Cindy O says:
    July 31, 2008 at

    I love going to the mountains where the air is cool and the pine trees smell so good.

  10. Alicia says:
    July 31, 2008 at

    snow massive

  11. Cindy O says:
    August 1, 2008 at

    Pueblo is fun to go to for the State Fair.

  12. R Hicks says:
    August 2, 2008 at

    The mountains are the best getaway. Love the terrific scenic areas

  13. James Jenkins says:
    August 2, 2008 at

    the Rocky Mountains

  14. Cindy O says:
    August 2, 2008 at

    Royal Gorge is nice. Amazing bridge.

  15. TOM LARSON says:
    August 2, 2008 at

    Go to the THE GREAT SAND DUNES then go to Alamosa for a great small town experiance.

  16. R Hicks says:
    August 3, 2008 at

    My fav place is Disney in Orlando FL

  17. Cindy O says:
    August 3, 2008 at

    Garden of the Gods is neat.

  18. David Green says:
    August 3, 2008 at

    let’s gi shiing

  19. Amy says:
    August 4, 2008 at

    We’ve lived in Greeley, CO for two years now, and we haven’t been to Snowmass or any of the other ski-resort areas yet! We do love to travel though, and have been many places, usually within 2 hours of here (we have a toddler). My favorite spot currently is Boyd Lake, in Loveland. It’s the closest lake to here, and I love the beach and swimming laps there!

  20. Tom Bellamy says:
    August 4, 2008 at

    Rocky Mountains

  21. Rachel Fox says:
    August 4, 2008 at

    I haven’t been but a few times, so my selection is limited. I moved to UT from NC, 2 years ago, and the most beautiful drive I’ve ever taken was from Denver to Vail and just beyond. That’s my favorite! Thanks for the opportunity to win!

  22. Debbie Lloyd says:
    August 5, 2008 at

    A fabulous place to visit. Especially in the fall.

  23. Timothy Sternberg says:
    August 5, 2008 at

    I love Colorado.

  24. missy hetherington says:
    August 5, 2008 at

    my traveling consists of traveling from state to state to take care of grandbabies. I have been to CO for a funeral and passed on thru it many times to CA. I would love to have the chance to really see it.

  25. Cindy O says:
    August 5, 2008 at

    The mountains in Colorado are cool!

  26. john friedman says:
    August 12, 2008 at

    In 1990 I bicycled up Maroon Creek Road to photograph the Bells, but didn’t take water and became dehydated before I could take any pictures. I’ve lived with that disappointment ever since, but next month I’m coming back from Massachusetts to try again. Wish me luck.

  27. Debbie Lloyd says:
    August 19, 2008 at

    Horsetooth Reservor is a great place to waterski
    and tube with the family.

  28. Laurie Bouzarelos says:
    September 11, 2008 at

    Perhaps it is too late to enter this contest, but a girlfriend and I are taking our kids to the Snowmass Balloon Festival this weekend – 2 moms and 5 kids – it should be a blast!

    I have children who love trains, so I recommend train rides in our beautiful state. The most memorable for me is the Pikes Peak Cog Railway…it was quite an experience!

  29. Kallis says:
    November 25, 2008 at

    This is a cool post about Socks and there prices.
    Thanks for such an informative post.

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