Monday 19 May 2014

Up, Up and Away!

I was standing upstairs a couple of evenings ago, when I heard a familiar sound from outside. 
A whooshing kind of sound.  I knew that if I looked out of the window, this is what I would see:
Rising into the air, taking off from the meadow on the other side of the river.  I had heard the whoosh of the burner, as it was switched on and off, to warm the air inside the balloon and lift it above the house-tops.

What I didn't expect was this, just a few minutes later:  
A second lovely balloon, taking off from the same place.

And then this:
A Third Balloon! 

Totally unexpected - balloons are a fairly regular sight over our village in the good weather, but three at once hasn't happened before.   
 
 
Floating away on the evening breeze... Wishing I could be up there too!

11 comments:

  1. How lovely! I saw some as I drove across Somerset at the weekend and I realised that the reason we never see them at home is because we live next to an airport. I love seeing them. Like an other worldly time travel machine. {*}

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    1. Yes, maybe that's what appeals to me too... It seems quite peaceful too, floating along in the breeze.
      I remember going to the Bristol Balloon Festival years ago - wonderful!

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  2. Pretty! My Mom says it was wonderful - eerily quiet tho' except for the burner times.

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  3. What a wonderful sight!
    We went to the Bristol Balloon Festival too - our B&B room had the most amazing view over the fields and we could see the balloons lift over the tree tops and drift ... we watched for several hours (or so it seemed). A sight I will never forget. Lucky you having them fly by so regularly.

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  4. There is something very special about these big balloons! Three in a row is additionally so :). I'd love to go to a balloon festival sometime ... You've done well to capture them on camera - even slowly moving objects silhouetted against the sky are not easy. How are you enjoying the new camera?

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    1. Hi Alexa! My new camera is so much better than the little one - witness these photos, which I first tried to capture with my point-&-shoot that was handy on the desk. When the second & third balloons appeared, I got my big camera as I wanted the best photos I could get. The p-&-s couldn't manage to get a decent shot of all three at once; when I uploaded the pictures from each camera, those taken with the small one were no good really. The new camera has made the difference between a Blog Post, or No Blog Post!

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  5. Lovely Lizzie - I saw a balloon festival at Hever Castle as a teenager - magical! Am considering a balloon flight as a gift for Hubby's 60th ...

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    1. Lovely! Davey bought me a balloon flight for my birthday... problem was, I was expecting James and they couldn't take me up, in case of an emergency landing (more likely with a balloon, than a plane).. They refunded our money & were very kind, but I never have been up... Maybe something to ask for on my next "special" birthday...

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  6. Lucky you Lizzie! My daughter lives in Canberra and she often sees them over the lake on the weekend.It is good you were able to get a photo.

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  7. Just a little early for the scavenger hunt, but it sounds like you'll have another to capture this summer. I'm very jealous that these are a common site for you!
    Rinda

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    1. Hi Rinda, yes, we do see them quite often during warm weather in the summertime. It tends to be early morning, or in the evening, as the "thermals" are more settled then apparently and the balloon is less likely to drift off course. It's great to see them - I still get excited, after eight years of living here.
      At our old house, we once had a hot air balloon come down for an emergency landing, in the fields behind our house. It came down quite fast - must have hit a funny air-pocket and lost altitude. I remember watching it dropping down, down... wondering if they would make it past the houses and into the field. They did - just. Half the neighbourhood rushed round to make sure they were all okay (or perhaps just to have a nosey at their lovely balloon). We were all excited - even the grown-ups!

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