Driving back from Del Mar beach this weekend, with a thoroughly worn out dog whose damp fur clumped in little spikes bound together with sand and sea salt, I saw a magical sight: three hot air balloons hovering in the sky up ahead. Two hung low in the sky, grazing the horizon, but the middle balloon began to gain upwards momentum as we approached it.
How many times have you looked up and seen a hot air balloon passing directly overhead? Me: just once.
It was such a simple treat to see this brightly-coloured thing floating in the sky right above me. Kind of like finding the fabled pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. I wondered who these flight enthusiasts were, and what their bird’s-eye view must look like. Could they see the yellow cliffs of Del Mar beach? Did they think the fields below looked like a jumbled patchwork quilt? Did they see my arm sticking out of the car window clutching a camera and wonder what my view looked like too?
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I went up in a hot air balloon once. The most striking thing to me was the SILENCE. It is SO quiet up there, just floating along, the occasional woosh of the gas jet as it refills the balloon. The day we went up there was low cloud cover, so part of the ride was in the clouds, total white out and no sound, no way to know how high up you were, just this feeling of isolation from the world. It was truly magical.
I hadn’t thought of the silence. Or floating into clouds. That sort of does my head in. In a good way! Thanks for sharing your experience, you make me want to go now!!
Great Great shot, Lauren! Have you ever gone up in one? If the opportunity presents itself, don’t pass it up. My husband and I were given a hot air balloon ride for our 25th anniversary. As it says on this page “Wot Larx”!
Thank you! Completely serendipitous, of course — very much a case of being in the right place at the right time.
No, I’ve never been up in one. I’d love to — although I think I would be tempted to hurl my handbag overboard. Maybe I should go sky-diving instead!