Balloons Over Albuquerque

150 color photos of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta and a celebration of hot—air balloon culture and community.

From the festival founder's boast at a party in 1971 that he could fly his newly bought balloon, to an annual celebration that now draws more than half a million people to New Mexico, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is a story of good times and friendships formed over decades of ballooning.

An average of 700 balloonists from scores of nations participa...