The glowing pilot...

Got to go up in a Hot Air Balloon on Sunday evening and Tom was our Pilot. Never knew that pilots of hot air balloons were called “Pilots” but they are. Tom has been flying since 1977 so he has a fair few hours under his belt. In the balloon you are really at the mercy of the winds because the pilot only has control of vertical movement – up and down.

To go up he shoots flames up into the balloon to heat the air causing it to rise, and to come down he either opens a valve on top of the balloon or just lets it fall gradually. I grabbed this shot as he had the flames on, hence the warm orange glow in his face.

If you have a list of things to do before you die, make sure you have a balloon flight on that list. It is one amazing experience and if you’re lucky enough to get a super pilot like Tom, you’ll thoroughly enjoy it.