Guest Blog. Student Pilot in Pagosa Springs Colorado by Tabatha Rainwater

Guest Blog: The students’ experience at Pagosa Springs

I visited Pagosa Springs to learn from Marissa. I was very excited to have a lesson from a woman operating a commercial balloon business. As a first-generation student pilot, I had never experienced the behind-the-scenes work of a commercial operation. It felt like this experience would pull the curtain back, and I could see the hidden world I knew existed but had not experienced.  

We drove from Albuquerque to Pagosa Springs, Colorado, a day before our expected training flights. The drive was delightful and picturesque. 

We drove our RV and found available public land to park our RV less than fifteen minutes from our launch site. 

Marissa met with Tony and me the night before to plan our flights. We are both students and would benefit from high-altitude training. Pagosa Springs’s elevation starts at around 7,200 feet (Get to Know Pagosa Springs, Colorado, 2024). Marissa instructed us that the envelope could not be fully packed with cold air due to the high altitude. While I understood the science behind air density, the following day, I was amazed to see Nizhoni’s response to heat. The negative pressure at the mouth of the envelope caused sinus waves to ripple from the mouth to the top as the heat expanded the cold air inside. I have always enjoyed thinking about air as a liquid, but experiencing less dense air instilled a better understanding of how hot air balloons lose functioning at higher altitudes. I could not have understood it the same way without this training experience.  

Tony and I could both train in Nizhoni; we swapped out by doing a hop. I was first, and he was second. After we packed away the balloon from our training flights, we debriefed. Tony and I reflected on a doubled delayed response between the burner and the envelope, given that we own and fly a smaller balloon with slightly stronger fabric porosity at a lower altitude. We were adjusting to (1) a larger balloon, (2) a higher altitude, and (3) an older balloon. The burns took longer to feel the response of the balloon’s buoyancy. The biggest takeaway from having the opportunity to fly Nizhoni with Marissa in Pagosa Springs is to be aware of the factors affecting your flight. I didn’t appreciate how well I knew my balloon and my normal flying area until I removed all the known factors and flew her balloon at a different altitude. 

Before we arrived, I asked Marissa if I could observe her operate her commercial ride balloon. It felt so foreign to me, and I wasn’t sure I would ever get the chance to experience a professional ride operator again. They booked a group flight, and I was invited to observe it. I met the whole team, which works so well together. The management of getting so many people organized together is still beyond me. They did it with ease. Denise, a self-proclaimed “cruise director,” just blew this aspect out of the water. While in flight, Marissa balanced flying the balloon, as shown in this image, while sharing relevant local information with the passengers. It was grand to see her flying Purple Rain next to Cody, her partner flying Piano Man with passengers as well. 

The cruise director, Denise, set up this beautiful post-flight party, a seamless and fun experience. She took care of many small details I had never considered for post-flight fun. Are you curious about the details? You’ll have to fly with the Pagosa Adventures team to find out. 

-Tabatha Rainwater