Articles and photo submitted by Larry Walker, Ruby Mountain Balloon Festival
The 2022 Ruby Mountain Balloon Festival is Friday, July 29 through Sunday, July 31.
This year will have more food options, and events for kids and families thanks to CK Connections and Events organizing the non-balloon activities.
Very early Friday morning in the Elko City Park, there may be tethered rides, and you’ll see balloons flying around Elko. Food trucks, kids’ activities, music, and entertainment will start around 6:30pm. The balloons will night glow around 8:30pm, wind and weather permitting.
Saturday and Sunday morning, about 27 balloons will launch at 6:00am (that’s right, 6 in the morning!) at the Spring Creek Sports Complex. Food trucks and many vendors will be on‑hand. Free tethered balloon rides and other activities will round out the mornings.
It’s cool in early July mornings, so dress appropriately, especially if you want to help “crew” getting the balloons unpacked, inflated, and repacked after the balloons land.
Saturday evening July 30 at 6:00pm, Spring Creek Association and Anthem Broadband are hosting a free movie night showing the movie “Up” at the Spring Creek Marina. Food trucks will be there as well.
The festival’s 21st year is presented by major sponsors CK Connections and Events, Cook’s Steakhouse and Saloon, Maverick Casino and Hotel, and Western States Propane.
It’s a fun weekend for the entire family!
Visit RubyMountainBalloons.org or search Ruby Mountain Balloon Festival on Facebook for more information. It’s a fun time for the entire family!
The Ruby Mountain Balloon Festival was started by the Elko Chamber of Commerce in 2001, continuing for 7 years. In 2008, a non-profit was formed by local balloonists to keep the event going. For the next several years, the balloon festival continued to be held the last weekend in September. With the weather that time of year, balloons were only able to fly one or two days, if at all. In 2019, the festival schedule was changed to the last weekend in July allowing flights all three days in more reliable conditions, and still cool enough in the early mornings to launch. The festival could not happen in 2020 due to Nevada’s Covid-19 restrictions on gatherings.
A small group of dedicated volunteers makes the Ruby Mountain Balloon Festival happen.
If you enjoy the event and would like the balloon festival to continue, more volunteers are needed to step in. Help is needed to organize the event, raise funds, retain and add sponsors, and handle various administrative and planning tasks. You can meet with the current volunteers and find out how you can help keep the balloon festival alive on Thursday, July 7, 6:00 p.m., at the Comfort Inn in Elko.