Flights of Fancy

Yesterday was capped off with some unexpected adventure as my mother, my daughter and myself found ourselves chasing hot air balloons down a back road in Central Jersey. It was the final day of the Quick Chek New Jersey Festival of Ballooning at Soderberg-Hunterdon Airport and despite rough weather earlier in the evening at least 20 balloons braved an ascent.

Luckily, we realized the weather was preventing the balloons from ascending very high and left our initial viewing spot, from which they were just distant tiny dots. We headed down Reading Road towards the balloons and found ourselves in the thick of it. Balloons were coming down all around us in fields and front and back yards. The excitement of the spectators both in cars and lawn chairs was palpable as the balloons descended and dwarfed the houses they were landing among. It made me wish I had a great camera. Here are a few shots I managed from the back seat of the car as the police warned cars to keep moving.

It was a perfect adventure for a summer evening. Thank you to the all the balloonists who made our evening and a great memory.