Hot Air Balloon Flight Record - 28&29Jun2003
Northwest Connecticut Balloon Festival

By Saturday evening, the winds had improved significantly. They also shifted 90 degrees out of the west, carrying us toward Torrington.

The inflation was much easier and the balloons stayed in a much tighter bunch. Even the flag balloon inflated and flew with us. Our launch took us right past the corner of the flag so we got a close-up of the balloon.

A little bit east and we began to hear loud music. A mile and a half later we could finally see a large party to the right of our track. Some balloons were over that direction, and eventually two balloons ended up landing at the party to the cheers of the participants!

We continued on a ways until we came over an open field next to a gravel driveway leading to a new house under construction. The road was wide enough to lay out and pack-up.

Sunday morning was very similar, with light winds shifting out of the West/South West. We crossed over the golf course, behind the exotic animal fields, and over some nice streams and ponds.

The winds were such that you could play hop-scotch with the other balloons. Down low you moved slowly and other balloons passed overhead, climb higher and you passed over the same balloons.

When we started looking for a good field for landing, I noticed a balloon ahead that had landed in some back yards so we setup for the same area. The grass was a bit wet, but we were able to walk to the parking area so the basket was dry and accessible to the chase vehicle. We packed the envelope quickly to avoid picking up too much moisture.