So this past 4th of July weekend, I made a little road trip to Driggs, Idaho for their 40th Teton Valley Balloon Rally. Situated in the Teton Valley with a clear view of Grand Teton itself, this was an event that I knew I couldn’t miss! Oh, and when I say “little road trip”, I mean that it was a absolute pain in the butt to drive each way. Seriously, sitting down for around 15 hours each way doesn’t feel good. It was worth it though!

The event started on July 1st and ended conveniently on a Sunday, July 4th. All four days had successful flights which is fairly rare - usually one or two days get ruined by inclement weather. This meant that I had plenty of opportunity to make some photos. I still need that longer lens though… lots of missed compositions. You can criticize me for buying into a hyper-expensive camera system another time.

My two main points of contact were Virginia and Margaret. They were wonderful to work with before, and during the festival. I hope that they like the pictures I made, and find the images useful for future promotions of the event.

During the event itself, I got to crew for two days, and had two days on the field for images. On my first day of crewing, I had the grand privilege to get on board. Big thanks to pilot Andy for that! I need to get some better pictures of his balloon though (the one with Riverton, Wyoming on it). The ones I got this time were okay but, I hope to get another chance in the future.

Outside of the event, I found a neat hostel in Driggs to stay at, Teton Hostel Hideaway. I paid a little over 200 dollars, after tax, for four nights. If the Jackson Hole area is a bit too pricey for you, take a look at this place. Inexpensive lodging determines if I am to attend a ballooning event or not. Say, for example, Steamboat Springs, Colorado has a balloon rally a little later this month. It’s a resort town, and I can’t reasonably afford spending two nights there by myself. Having a friend to join me would probably help a lot. Is this when I cynically ask: what are friends?

Oh, and I did make a short venture into Grand Teton National Park. So there’s another park off the list. I would like to devote more time to that park if I get the chance.

I didn’t go super hard on culling this time. I feel like many of the photos are worth sharing this time. Please take a look through the photos, and I hope that you put this event on your calendar next year.