October 26

Hot Air Balloon Ride

After breakfast one morning in Amboise, France, we heard the balloons before they came into view. We were excited to watch them because we had plans for a hot air balloon ride the following day.

Eight of us met our pilot and his assistant while it was still dark and boarded the van to drive 30 minutes to an open field in the Loire Valley. Their experience was evident as they skillfully pulled the basket off the trailer, unrolled the balloon, and inflated it with air using a large fan. Then they turned on the burners to heat the air because hot air rises. They prompted us for assistance as needed. So peaceful and no better way to watch the sunrise over the French countryside.

No photos of us in the balloon because as soon as the eight of us crawled inside, we lifted off and after we landed, we were asked to immediately disembark.

We helped pack it all back onto the trailer.

This is an elementary video, but it accurately depicts our experience. Go here to view full screen.

A hot air balloon pilot is also called an aeronaut. Go here to view full screen.

For older students: “This is the true story of one child, Peter Wetzel, and his family, as they risk their lives for the hope of freedom in a daring escape from East Germany via a handmade hot air balloon in 1979.” (Amazon)

Thanks to Starrmatica for the following two book suggestions:

“John Jeffries, an Englishman, and his pilot, Jean-Pierre Blanchard, a Frenchman, want to be the first. On January 7, 1785, they set out to cross the English Channel to France in a balloon.” (Amazon)

“More than a century before the Wright Brothers invented their plane, Joseph and Étienne Montgolfier sent a flying machine into the skies—a hot-air balloon with three animals in the basket.” (Amazon)