About 6 I went out to see if there was going to be any type of sunset event. There literally wasn't a cloud in the sky but there was this.
We haven't seen any of these since way back last summer so I was really surprised. It was a ways off though... not like the event last summer where several balloons flew directly over my house. Here's a photo of one I took on that August day.
Back to tonight. So I went in to get my camera and took that first photo. Then I went in and told the husband what was going on. By the time I got back out I couldn't find the balloon anywhere. Then I looked down the street where the trees weren't in the way and saw this.
This one was barely clearing the tops of the orange trees in the grove across the street. I knew it was going to land some place really close. My best guess would be at a new housing development right at the end of our street. They've cleared a lot of the land down there but there's nothing built on it yet. I got into the car and took off to see what I could find.
By the time I got to the development they had already started to let the air out of the balloon.
Even with a bunch of the air gone, these things are HUGE!
The guys were super nice and told me quite a bit about how the balloons work and that they had to land some place quick because the sun, which stirs up the air, was nearly set. They also offer rides to the public and their business name is Balloons and Beyond.
Here's a view of the basket/fuel area. The basket was laying on its side in this photo.
The fuel tanks (propane) are located in the basket!
I asked them where the parachutes were. They laughed. 
In short order they had the air out and were starting to fold the whole thing up. Kinda like the world's biggest air mattress.
Hot Air ballooning is something I would really like to do but I'm not sure I'm brave enough at this point in my life. I will, however, keep their card.
We haven't seen any of these since way back last summer so I was really surprised. It was a ways off though... not like the event last summer where several balloons flew directly over my house. Here's a photo of one I took on that August day.
Back to tonight. So I went in to get my camera and took that first photo. Then I went in and told the husband what was going on. By the time I got back out I couldn't find the balloon anywhere. Then I looked down the street where the trees weren't in the way and saw this.
This one was barely clearing the tops of the orange trees in the grove across the street. I knew it was going to land some place really close. My best guess would be at a new housing development right at the end of our street. They've cleared a lot of the land down there but there's nothing built on it yet. I got into the car and took off to see what I could find.
By the time I got to the development they had already started to let the air out of the balloon.
Even with a bunch of the air gone, these things are HUGE!
The guys were super nice and told me quite a bit about how the balloons work and that they had to land some place quick because the sun, which stirs up the air, was nearly set. They also offer rides to the public and their business name is Balloons and Beyond.
Here's a view of the basket/fuel area. The basket was laying on its side in this photo.
The fuel tanks (propane) are located in the basket!
I asked them where the parachutes were. They laughed. In short order they had the air out and were starting to fold the whole thing up. Kinda like the world's biggest air mattress.
Hot Air ballooning is something I would really like to do but I'm not sure I'm brave enough at this point in my life. I will, however, keep their card.
