A Balloon Safari with Bill Harrop - June 17'th 2006 at 06:30

This picture is out of chronological order, but it really is
"The Lucky Shot" of the Balloon Safari
(shot taken at 06:42)

While the balloons are inflated Coffee and Tea is served ad libitum.
A large fire is already lit to keep us warm and cosy
in the chilly South African winther morning
(Shot taken at 05:57)

Moving towards our balloon which is almost ready for us to embarg
(Sorry if I have unintendedly posted pictures of recoqniceable persons here,
I have not asked permission to do so, and will remove picture at request)
*
Moving towards our balloon which is the blue one on the left
(Shot taken 06:22)


(shot taken at 06:22)


First balloon to take of - we are obviously not on it :-)
(shot taken at 06:23)


"The Lucky Shot" of the Balloon Safari
It really shows what the experience is all about.
Perfect silence and tranquility - floating without a sound -
hovering and at peace with everything
(shot taken at 06:42)


Still shortly after lift off - hovering low over a nearby lake
(Shot taken at 06:44)


(Shot taken at 06:45)


The most comfortable air-travel ever
You hardly notice the changes in elevation
Except ofcourse for what your eyes see
(Shot taken at 06:57)


The next 3 shots are taken as an attempt of a panorama shot
which means that if you put them in order from right to left
you will get a really wide (and big) picture ;-)
(next 3 shots taken at 07:00)



Out of a total of 4 balloons 3 took of before us
Meaning we were last to take of, so whenever
balloons shows in my pics, they are in
the approximate direction
that we are moving towards
(Shot taken at 07:01)


Loads of picture were taken inbetween this and the previous
but I am currently under bandwidth limitations :-)
(Shot taken at 07:18)


The first animals we encountered, I still need to consult
some game knowledgeable individual to confirm the exact species
(Please note that you can press any picture here to see it in
its original size - I guess its neccessarry to actually see the animals)
(Shot taken at 07:19)


Same animals - different angle
(Shot taken at 07:19)


I love the landscape and the depth of it
(Shot taken at 07:21)


A little down and to the left of the balloon you can see
some more animals - as before - please enlarge photo by left-clicking it
("right-click and choosing save as" will save the picture to your computer)
(Shot taken at 07:22)


More beatyfull landscape as we hower low above the ground
(Shot taken at 07:24)


More of it :-)


3 balloons + our own wessel approaching landing grounds
(Shot taken at 07:28)


At this time we have consumed 2 glasses of excellent champagne
served by the notorious and everyday heroic Bill Harrop
*
Landing was the smoothest - actually you don't notice the landing at all
which were a relief, as the landing instructions we received before take of (which was also when Bill - as instructed by law and insurance - showed us the emergency exits)
turned out to be instructions for crash-landing :-)
*
Tinyiko and I won ownership of the champagne cork by excelling
as the most romantic couple (competition was present
in the shape of 3 other couples - but they didn't stand a chance ! :-P)
*
Again - I need a game knowledgable person to tell me the species
as I have totally forgotten :)
(Shot taken at 08:14)

Thats it ! It was a experience of a lifetime - although I do hope to try it again!
No more pictures, but after returning to the farm we were served an excellent breakfast at the patio with another stunning view of the beatyfull landscape of SouthAfrica. You just got to love this country - I will be back !