Great Wellsville Hot-Air Balloon Rally

WE have finally had a chance to see hot-air balloons over the weekend!! Now we are back at home, but so delighted we were lucky to see the intense fast work balloon teams must accomplish in order to launch. Hard work, but with a gratifying launch to the sky where they look so easy soaring with the clouds, raptors and, to look down upon the glorious Earth and countryside. 

It wasn't anything even close to a "perfect" four-day hot-air ballooning weekend, but all teams made the best of it, explaining how things work, showing their equipment off, and in general, just answering a lot of questions of many who asked! Though the wind did not cooperate at all, there was a huge crowd out to see these big and colorful balloons once they were inflated!

Our thanks to all the balloonists and their teams who came out from everywhere, to make it an incredible and colorful event! Thanks also to quaint town of Wellsville for sponsoring such an event, and the great fireworks afterwards! Thanks to Mother Nature who ensured Saturday night offered  just enough wind for some of the balloonists to even launch! Friday was the first day of this rally, and it was so wet, rainy and windy that Saturday evening was practically the only launch opportunity some balloonists had, and that was after the projected launch time was pushed back as winds were still too high! Even Saturday during the night, it poured down heavily, to make it even more difficult for any launches Sunday morning! 

Here's a few pictures, and remember to click to see them larger!

BUT everyone did stay around for the fireworks which was a great noisy but colorful hit with the kids!!

Tonight's Sunset on the Upper Niagara

You should have been here....   

The sunset and the clouds were almost perfect tonight on the upper Niagara River. It's been quite a few days since I've taken my camera with me to see the sunset since I've been working almost nonstop reviewing and archiving image files, though this exciting work has been going on for well over a decade now. I just love being parked in front of a monitor for so many endless hours each day!!

Who wouldn't enjoy such a golden cloudy sunset like this?

The last few weeks have seen empty skies above a setting sun, and I don't even use my camera when the skies are clear like that. Tonight however, was not the same as previous evenings, and I totally enjoyed it, except of course, for the 1,205 flying insects that were buzzing in and out of my camera view, and around and on me! Yesterday, as was the case during the last few times we went out for the sunset, the wind was blowing quite nicely, save for blowing insects onto our clothes and into our faces! The tiny dark spots visible in some of the pictures are the insects flying around with a model release in their little paws......

Nicest sunset in these parts in many days!!

Here's a few images snapped with my S5 of tonight's sunset. These pictures were not edited at all.

Enjoy these golden moments, and leave a few words if you really DO enjoy them!! Remember, you can click on these to see them in a bigger size!

Sheila loves these cloudy fiery sunsets as much as I do!
But she's smart enough to bring a camera when I don't!

Leaving soon after this moment, but not before
we saw the golden light backlighting some
wisps of cloud high up. Soooo lovely!

 I think the upper Niagara River has some very nice sunsets often. There are, of course, many occasions when WE enjoy some quite fiery sunsets. Here's one sample from years ago while I was still new to the area. This is posted at my site at redbubble and will take you to another website. 

click here to fototaker's older image of Fire on the upper Niagara 

Olcott, NY Fireworks a Day Earlier!!

Happen to be near Olcott, New York next year about this time of the year? Want to see some really niiiice HUGEEEEE fireworks reflected on water (depending on where you're positioned). Come by Olcott; it's a small lakeside town but ooooh, do they do fireworks well!! Come on by and join the (growing) crowd.....  you'll enjoy the show!!! Tonight's show is the BEST I've seen in the three years I started calling western New York (WNY) home. No huge fireworks burst higher than the tower of the San Francisco Bay Bridge at New Year's, but all the same...  good enough for me, and it can be just as good for you too!!

You can click on the links below to see some fireworks pictures which will open in a separate window. YES, the smoky golden horizon is the afterglow of a spectacular sunset that dipped below the waters of Lake Ontario just an hour prior! Really!

Enjoy!!

Here's a firework show that's worth traveling for!!!

And here's yet another!!

Fireworks at Niagara Falls

It's been hot here, as it has been everywhere else, so last night we escaped the heat to see the fireworks, in a not-too-secret location we haven't been for some time.....

I made sure to take both of my tripods (I only have three and about the same number of monopods), so I could use my little smartphone holder to make a video! Due to not knowing if my time is fast/slower than the watch of those launching the fireworks, there is about a minute of no bursts while waiting for the start. 

It was even nice for us, when we later watched the recorded fireworks, as it's not the same when one is looking through a camera viewfinder. Heck, on the S5 screen, it looked sharper than a knife, but we were watching the original file too!

To all of my Canadian friends, as well as everyone else, have a great celebration of Canada Day and/or the Fourth of July, and stay safe with those sparklers and boom-items with the kids! Please take a long minute to remember those who did not return from a conflict, and those friends and Families that waited for their loved ones to return. 

Otherwise, hoping y'all will enjoy the fireworks!!