The envelope is made out of rip-stop nylon, similar to that used in parachutes. The fabric has a special coating to keep the hot air from escaping. The basket is handwoven wicker, as a nod to tradition. Wicker is universally preferred by manufacturers because, even today, wicker provides the best combination of any material available: it is both lightweight and durable.

The burner uses propane, the same fuel that many people use to heat their homes. We typically carry approximately 30 gallons of propane (more in competition) and will burn between 15 and 20 gallons on a typical flight.

 Yes. Hot-Air Balloons are federally licensed aircraft and, as such, require a pilot’s license to operate. For more information, check out the “learn to fly” page!

For safety reasons, it is best to fly within two hours after sunrise and two hours prior to sunset.

 The ride lasts approximately one hour. The length of the ride can vary with each flight, depending upon availability of landing spots, fuel consumption and other factors.

We can launch virtually anywhere that there is a large enough open area to inflate the balloon, provided we have permission to use the property. Our launch location is determined by the direction of the wind. Part of our flight planning involves making sure the our potential flight path doesn’t take us into restricted areas.

Wherever the wind takes us – that’s part of the joy of ballooning! We typically know the rough direction that we will travel, be we literally don’t know exactly where we will land until we get there. So, the flights are always different!