GRANT COUNTY – Either from the skies above or the ground below, the views should be breathtaking.

For three days this weekend, Oct. 24-26, Grant County skies will be ablaze with color as Grant County prepares for its first-ever hot air balloon festival.

The “Journey Through Time” event is sponsored by the Grant County Chamber of Commerce and Ed Staub & Sons Propane, which is providing all the propane for the balloons.

As many as 12 balloons, with names such as “So Easy” and “Morning Glory,” will take to the skies during the family-friendly event.

Sunrise flights on Friday morning, about 7:30 a.m., will get things started for the weekend. Mt. Vernon Middle School will be the launch site, with the balloons flying for about an hour, depending on the winds and the pilots’ discretion. Cammie Haney is scheduled to sing our national anthem to kick things off.

The public is invited to join the pilots and sponsors for a Grant County-style celebration 5:30 p.m. Friday at the Mt. Vernon Community Hall. There will be a barbecue pork dinner with all the trimmings, courtesy of Russell’s Meats.

Poetry readings by Kathy Moss, bluegrass music by Upriver Country Band and art displays by the Grant County Art Association will provide an “uplifting atmosphere” for the evening.

The cost for the dinner is $10 for adults, and $5 for seniors, children under 12 and crew members.

Saturday will bring more sunrise launches, again from Mt. Vernon Middle School. Rides cost $200 per person and reservations are now being accepted at the Chamber office.

According to Sharon Mogg, executive director of the Chamber, “If this is something you have always wanted to try, here’s the opportunity … to experience a calm and peaceful view of the breathtaking scenery that is Grant County.”

The $200 ride charges will be split by the pilots and the Chamber. Mogg said that while the event’s not a fund-raiser for the Chamber, organizers expect to break even on the festival.

Tethered rides will also be offered Saturday in Dayville, Prairie City and John Day. The cost for the 10-minute tethered rides is $10 for adults and $5 for children under 12 and seniors, with proceeds going to help pay for the event. A parent or guardian must accompany children.

About 6 p.m. Saturday, the John Day Golf Course will be the setting for the “Night Glow,” when the balloons put on a light show in the evening skies. Following the sunset spectacle, Russell’s Meats and Gardner Enterprises will host a wine-tasting social at the clubhouse.

The balloons will take to the air for the final flights of the weekend on Sunday.

Mogg said more than 20 area motels, restaurants and other businesses have stepped up to sponsor and support the event.

“My hope is that the residents of Grant County have a great time at the festival and enjoy the experience of something new,” she said.

For tickets or reservations for any of the festival’s activities, volunteer crew member opportunities, or any other information, call the Grant County Chamber of Commerce at 575-0547.

A dozen hot air balloons lifted off in the early morning hours Friday, Oct. 24, as the Grant County Balloon Festival got under way.