But I’m getting ahead of myself. This week my colleague Lila Seidman told the story of the black bear at the center of the debate. Nicknamed Victor, the bear was beloved by locals and known to ...

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – The crew of the Smokey Bear balloon hopes to have a brand new one at the Balloon Fiesta this year because the current one is showing its age. It’s an iconic special ...

New Mexicans will surely remember watching the Smokey Bear balloon crash into a radio tower, putting the lives of the pilot and two young boys in jeopardy. Thursday was the 20th anniversary of ...

Steve Searles, a Mammoth Lakes resident known as “the Bear Whisperer,” told me he’d go to the Lakes Basin to spend time with Victor. Searles described Victor as a friendly creature with the ...

Complicating the situation further, this wasn’t just any bear. Many people in town knew him as “Victor.” Reports of human-black bear interactions have been on the rise across the country for ...

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – The new Smokey Bear special shape balloon has made its debut. After more than 20 years in operation, it was time for the last hot air balloon to be replaced.

All those things are constantly in my head,” said Trillanes. New Smokey Bear balloon debuts at 2024 Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta “Balloons want to fly, so keeping them tethered on ...