Tag: hot air balloon

Creeping up on 1200 Readers….

….and a photographic gallery.

MichaelStephenWills11 Comments

As of April 5th 1181 is the count of subscribers to this blog, an interesting number. The individual numerals sum to a prime number, 11. I appreciate each and every “1” added together, you readers. Thank You.

Coincidentally, yesterday 1,200 of my blogs are published….Here is a selection of images from these posts.

The trail at Petrohue Falls is packed with tourists on a sunny summer afternoon.
Pam and Mike Wills stayed with Marantha House B&B, during our Spring 2014 Ireland Tour. It was our base in County Cork. Our day of arrival, that evening, I visited Charlemagne and fed him an apple, saved from dinner. We learned from our hosts, Olwen and Douglas Venn, he is a retired show horse they rescued. The following morning I visited Charlemagne again with an apple and my camera. As I walked up, starting from the far end of his field, Charlemagne rewarded me with a series of astounding poses, trotting toward me in fine form. The morning mists, hawthorn in bloom, distant hills came together for this memory.
Newlyweds on Cocoa Beach waiting for the photographer in a perfect early evening light. A cruise ship departing from Port Canaveral in the distance.
Trillium bloom April through May in central New York State. I found these blooming on the rim of Fillmore Glen near Owasco Lake and the town of Moravia.
Don Roberto, Maritime pilot, approaches the Regatta
Don Roberto is on the bow
Mexican Poppies bloomed in profusion throughout the Superstitions after the plentiful winter rains of 2008.
Pamela and Michael Wills with Iceberg Glacier, Bernardo O’Higgins National Park, Fjord Tempanos, Chile aboard the Oceania Regatta
A swan and cygnet feeding from the pristine waters of the River Cong, County Mayo, Ireland. Outside the door of Ashford Castle.
Ocotillo Sunset
Ocotillo Sunset
The crest of the Portugest Man of War is very visible in the water, the sac can be inflated/deflated to catch the wind or even sink the organism to escape surface feeders.
Another solution to the crooked horizon is to level, crop, and build out the lost portions, as I did here. Very time consuming….better to keep the horizon level in the camera, difficult for me to remember.
Taken from the entrance.
Hydrangea Ensenada ClubAleman Chile February 15, 2016
Hydrangea Ensenada ClubAleman Chile February 15, 2016

Click Me for my Shutterstock Gallery

Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved Michael Stephen Wills

Balloon over Home

Waiting for the Whooooosh

MichaelStephenWills37 Comments

Whoosh….whoosh. Taking out the garbage Monday evening, July 15th, 2019 I heard the unmistakable sound of a liquid propane burner. As the propane is gasified and ignited, the flame and exhaust are directed into the balloon, all under control of the human operator. What a sound!!

These past years, hot air balloons started launching from West Hill and, when the breeze (balloons never launch in winds, as far as I know) is right the balloon and gondola full of passengers drift in the direction of our home. More than one time, directly overhead, I estimate 200 feet away. We could clearly see and converse with the passengers. What fun.

Each previous viewing I regretted not filming the balloon as the vision floated away. Last Monday, I dropped everything (not literally, I did leave the garbage in the bin), mounted the Canon lens EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM on a EOS 1Ds Mark III body, returning to the north side of our property as the balloon emerged from the trees, only the envelope visible.

We have enjoyed this balloon before, the envelope pattern evokes a classic Navajo Rug, the colors really pop against the blue sky.

Why the Whooooosh?

Tourists and local residents pay $230 per person for the experience of floating silently over Finger Lakes landscape with a launch from Trumansburg, ending up over Ithaca, in its valley surrounded by hills. Cayuga Lake is visible the entire flight, to the east, then northeast as the path reaches Ithaca. As they approached the balloon elevation was not so high relative to our home. You can see this clearly in the first photograph. With the zoom on 300 mm I was almost able to look into the basket, each of the four riders (the operation, looking at a cell phone, and three passengers) was recognizable.

There are three propane burners, two in front and the edge of a third just visible between the front pair.

Ethereal silence and reveres are broken when the burner lights up. Here it appears only one burner is running, sending the craft high above us.

Seven of the forty images are shared here. The duration was three minutes. With a goal of capturing the action, I had the camera on burst mode, with the shutter pressed the exposures run serially, in close succession.

I perfected these seven photographs to represent the perfection of this colorful event as it passed from the northwest, disappearing in the tree line to the southeast.

I am listening for the next event, camera and lens ready.

Post script….it was my usual early morning blogging time when I heard the familiar Whooooosshh, whoooosssshhh, grabbed my IPhone for a video and captured the following. You will hear the gondola occupants chatting. The burner was turned on at 1:03 when the balloon was fairly distant. The Whoooosssshhhh is low, but audible.

Today, they were headed North/Northwest in the opposite direction from Monday and are backlit. Enjoy!!

Copyright 2022 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved

First Balloon Sighting

Always surprising and a wonder

MichaelStephenWills14 Comments

Pam and I enjoyed the local hot air balloon for the first time in 2021 floating directly in front of our home, along the valley formed by hills on the east and west, headed north toward Cayuga Lake and descending steadily, looked to have landed close by. I heard the “whoosh, whoosh” of the gas burner first and distinct from a jet landing at Tompkins County airport. Always a thrill to see one up close.

Photos from previous years, yes it was this close last week.

Copyright 2021 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved

700 Readers

700 in the basket and room for more

MichaelStephenWills13 Comments

Here is a list of the 85 countries you are from, ordered by number of reads so far in 2019. Thank You!!

United StatesIndiaCanadaUnited KingdomGermanyAustraliaFranceSpainJapanSwitzerlandNetherlandsPhilippinesItalyUnited Arab EmiratesNigeriaAustriaMalaysiaPakistanBrazilSwedenIndonesiaIrelandGreeceRussiaFinlandKenyaSingaporeNew ZealandGuatemalaPolandHong Kong SAR ChinaSouth AfricaSaudi ArabiaThailandAzerbaijanPortugalArgentinaMexicoVietnamChinaColombiaGuamSouth KoreaNorwayAnguillaQatarBangladeshRomaniaPeruSri LankaCroatiaSlovakiaGibraltarCzech RepublicTurkeyBosnia & HerzegovinaDenmarkSt. MartinPapua New GuineaHungaryPalestinian TerritoriesBelgiumIsraelChileAmerican SamoaBulgariaSerbiaSt. BarthélemyMacedoniaOmanNepalMaltaPuerto RicoCameroonUkraineLithuaniaCambodiaSenegalCôte d’IvoireArmeniaEuropean UnionIraqTunisiaMaldivesGuernseyBahamasLaos
Copyright 2019 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved