Weekend Getaway — Adrien Petersen

This past weekend a few friends of mine and I road-tripped to Dallas from Austin. We had plans to go to a hot air balloon festival, camp at a nearby lake, and then visit a large water slide park on the way back home. It was a spontaneous weekend trip in the sense that we hit the road with no camp site reserved and no tickets purchased, but life takes spontaneity...right?

We arrived in Dallas safely, set up camp and made our way to "Balloonapolooza". Upon arrival we became wary of our decision because all we could see beyond the entrance were small carnival rides and tents for food and beer. At nightfall, the hot air balloons were inflated and glowed with beauty. Our worries faded away as we stood staring at the bright, beautiful, big balloons. Back to camp, after a quick stop at Super Target for some campsite essentials, Dylan started the fire. The fire's smoke floating low in front of Jake's headlights initiated the night's photo shoot. Caroline took out her camera and started snapping pictures. Soon her tripod was set up for more stable photos of the campsite activity. Sam, Dylan and Jake purchased light sabers leaving the carnival that gave Caroline the idea of taking long exposure shots. We spent almost two hours experimenting with different movements and poses. Nature, friends, plastic glowing sticks, and a camera is all we needed to have a blast. Alarms were set to catch the sunrise and sheep started jumping over our heads upon making contact with our sleeping bags.

The next day we packed up the campsite and hit the road with all eyes set on Waco. This was our third and final stop. BSR Cable Park where wake boarders practice also has a giant slide with three different inclines you can choose from. The key to being successful on the slides and not belly flopping is to be able to control your body weight in midair. I have to say the boys were better than Caroline and I, although we did not belly flop or face plant (thankfully). After watching the more experienced sliders, flipping seemed to also help to control your body after launching off the end of the slide. Volleyball, watching the wake boarders practice, and dinner at the park ended our weekend getaway. Today was a rude awakening to such a fun weekend, but Labor Day weekend is just 4 days away!