I woke at 2:30 am and the Aurora Borealis was shining bright!
Tag Archives: Winthrop WA
The Winthrop Balloon Round Up happened this weekend. We stayed home and watched the balloons go by from here. I did sort of miss the action of the balloon inflation and take off but didn’t have the energy to get up early and go to town to watch that part. The weather was perfect and people had long rides, drifting up and down and then most came down valley to land at or near the airport.
Methow Trails hosted another Doggie Dash at their new headquarters in Winthrop on Saturday. It was a fabulous, fun event with lots of participants and many spectators. The Doggie Dash is part costume contest and part race. It’s pretty clear that some folks are there for the costumes and others for the race. Volunteers are a big part of the Doggie Dash, helping setup, take registrations, judge, emcee, photograph and clean up when it’s all over.
The event started with warm up laps and then a costume parade before the racing got underway. There were two kids’ heats with the top two in each heat going to the final. Then there were six adult heats with the winner of each heat going to the final. After both finals, there was the all important costume judging. It’s pretty clear that my favorite dog costume did not win. Oh well, there were so many choices. So many people vying for the coveted golden poodle award!
In the races, watch for the German short-haired pointers. The huskies didn’t have a chance against those strong, athletic dogs. And I think this is the first time I’ve seen a woman win the race. In fact, all three top finishers were women!
Last night was the culmination of Christmas at the End of the Road in Winthrop. Santa had arrived, bonfires were lit, hot drinks were served, town lights were lit along with the festive Christmas tree. And then the fireworks! Best thing about winter fireworks? You don’t need to stay up late to see them! They start at 6 pm.
The annual Winthrop Balloon Roundup was this weekend. Luckily, I went Friday morning. It snowed yesterday and today so the balloons did not go up as planned. Someone said a few went up yesterday afternoon and last night they had the big balloon glow with four of the hot air balloons inflated and lighting up downtown after dark. I missed that too.
They aim to start inflating about 7 am. Before that, there is a lot of work to do, unpacking the balloons and getting the lines straightened out, hooking up the baskets, testing the burners and so on. There were lots of spectators armed with cameras and cell phones. Many people were signed up for rides too. Once the balloons were up in the air, they did not move very far as the air currents were slow on Friday. A couple made it as far as the airport to land in the nearby fields.
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