My wife and I had just returned from an overnight trip to Lansdale, Pennsylvania, visiting friends. We were tired from driving and had settled in for the evening to watch our favorite baseball team, the Cleveland Guardians. Then, our neighbor Jonathan came over to tell us two hot air balloons were sailing south of our home.
I went out the back door and photographed the balloons high in the sky. However, it didn’t take long to realize that the balloons were quickly descending. There wasn’t much wind, which isn’t unusual around sunset, so I wasn’t sure where they would land. We soon found out.
Please click on the photos to enlarge them.
Both balloons began sinking toward our house. They briefly went out of sight but silently reappeared over other neighbors’ homes. Thinking they were aiming for our local park, Neva and I jumped in the car and headed there. I drove carefully as children raced on bicycles and people ran from their homes to watch the balloons land.
I initially drove into the park, but the first balloon was already on the ground, swarmed by curious folks, young and old. It was then I heard the second balloon fire its gas burner. I looked up, and it was between two houses, still heading north. It had overshot the park. We got in the car and drove to find where this balloon would set down.
When we found it, the skillful pilot had already gingerly landed it on a narrow street in our suburban housing development. With a tree on each side of the road, it had been a tight landing. The pilot kept opening the gas valve burner briefly to create more heat to keep the balloon’s envelope from collapsing into one of the trees. He kept firing the burner until the ground team arrived with the trailer to haul the balloons and their baskets back home.
As much as I enjoy baseball, I will take this unexpected and extraordinary entertainment any day.
© Bruce Stambaugh 2023
Roadkill Crossing 
A nice surprise, indeed!
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