Some of you may know that I write a blog on saratoga.com called the Saratoga Traveler. I did a piece for that site on my first hot air balloon ride. There are stipulations that I have to follow while writing on this site, like if I write about a particular business I can’t link websites and other information since they are basically an advertising site. But here I can do whatever I want.
So let me tell you about the amazing balloon flight I had with Carried Away Balloon Flights captained by Mike Hernandez and his crew. Captain Mike is a friendly, outgoing guy who absolutely loves ballooning. He offers safety as his first priority. At first I was a little nervous — I don’t have a fear of heights but still lifting off in an open basket with nothing below you and the only thing keeping you a loft is a burner filled with propane… well yeah…. you really gotta trust the guy flying it.
 |
| Captain Mike (center) and his wife Ellen next to him |
His crew that includes his wife Ellen demonstrated they knew what they were doing. Once we got to the take off site they took out the balloon and got to work. I’ve been to hot air balloon events before and watched them fill the balloons and hit the burners to get it upright but I’ve never seen one but together from scratch.
The video above shows just how much it takes to get ready for the flight.
I live in an amazing area, with mountains, lakes and gorgeous scenery just about everywhere you look. At 1600 feet you can see a lot of it as you will be able to see in the photos below.
 |
| The Hudson River. We are heading toward Queensbury |
 |
| You can see Lake George in the distance |
 |
| The Hudson River cutting through the landscape |
 |
| My personal favorite. I leaned over to take it. |
The video below is of our actual flight. It was amazing to hear dogs barking and to be able to shout down to the people on the ground below. It was so still and quiet except for Mike hitting the burners every so often to keep us afloat.
If you’ve ever thought about a hot air balloon flight–do it! If you want to do a hot air balloon flight — do it! If you’re in the Saratoga Springs NY area anytime of the year and want to take a hot air balloon flight call Mike at Carried Away Balloon Flights. You can reach him at 518-260-6270. He has a variety of different flight available and yes, he flies YEAR ROUND!! Some of the most amazing times to fly is in the winter, even here in the NE. Most people that come to Saratoga in the summer come for track season but the track is closed on Tuesdays so why not get a bird’s eye view of the area on “dark day”?
For more information about Captain Mike and his hot air balloon flights you can check out his website
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.