Go With the Float

After watching the recent adventures of those European hot-air balloonists who circled the globe, some may wonder what it would be like to float suspended above the earth in a slow-moving balloon.

There are a couple of places within driving distance of the San Fernando Valley where you can try it--with a certified pilot at the helm.

“This is not a fast sport,” said Ella Davey, a crew member with Dreams Unlimited, a Santa Clarita company that offers hot-air balloon rides to the public by reservation.

“Depending on the winds, you travel at up to 10 miles an hour. If it’s blowing faster, we don’t fly.”

Great Escapes in the Antelope Valley also books private balloon trips.

Davey predicted a surge of interest in ballooning since Swiss balloonist Bertrand Piccard and Great Britain’s Brian Jones last week became the first to circumnavigate the world in a hot-air balloon.

Davey said the company is booked until May 22 and suggests calling fairly soon to reserve a trip this spring.

Dreams Unlimited can be reached at (800) 2-HOT-AIR; Great Escapes at (800) 346-6444.

The trips offered by Dreams Unlimited are designed for individuals or groups of five or fewer.

The rides are in the early morning when the best local wind conditions for ballooning occur. They end well before noon.

Trips cost about $100 a person, depending on the length of the flight, although they usually last about 45 minutes.

Shorter rides are available at lower prices during several upcoming fairs and festivals in Southern California, including the Deaf Kid’s Kamp Benefit Balloon and Kite Festival on May 8-9 at Sproul Ranch in Lancaster. Call Great Escapes for ride information.

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Davey’s husband, Dean, one of the co-owners who’s been piloting balloons for 13 years, conducts the flights for Dreams Unlimited.

Davey said pilots have to be licensed and retested every two years to take passengers aloft.

Their trips usually cover three to five miles above Canyon Country.

Riders arrive at the company’s office on Sierra Highway before sunrise and caravan with the Daveys to an open-air launch site determined by the day’s weather conditions.

Once they reach the site, “You can watch or assist with the inflation of the balloon,” Davey said.

Gas-heated air is blown into the inflatable part of the balloon, called the “envelope,” with a powerful fan, causing it to expand to six stories high. The gondola where the passengers ride is pulled up underneath the balloon when it rises and catches the wind.

Trips usually end in open country where the pilot determines it’s safe to land.

A “chase vehicle” that has followed the balloon on land returns travelers and the balloon to the office where they started.