Brian Boland, an extraordinary balloonist and balloon maker, held his 11th Experimental Balloon and Airship Meet in Post Mills, Vermont, May 20-22, 2016. If one characterizes the Quechee Balloon Festival as traditional and conventional, Post Mills would have to be labeled avant-garde and almost “hippy”, or at least laid-back. At Post Mills you might see twice as many balloons as in Quechee, and the many unconventional balloons there are fun and exciting.
The event takes place at the Post Mills Airport. Parking is free and just across the road from where the balloons launch. Admission is also free. There is food served by local non-profit groups. And if you arrive early or stay late you can tour Brian’s marvelous museum — also free. The two and a half story museum is filled with wild memorabilia of all sorts related to balloons and balloon making.
Below is a view of the Post Mills airport at a time when only Brian and I were there. Actually, we were not there at all but drifting toward NH enroute to Brian’s setting an amazing ballooning record.
To the left of the road is the parking area for the balloon festival. You can see Brian’s home and museum at the bottom left. Across the grass runway 3 gliders and 3 tow planes are parked. Other gliders are folded up in the 11 long tubes to the right of the visible gliders. Balloons launch all along the runway which extends a considerable distance to the right of this photo. The photo also shows Lake Fairlee.
The scene looks quite different during the balloon festival. The image below is a 9-shot panorama showing over 180 degrees along the runway just before 7 AM May 21, 2016. Brian’s museum is near the middle of the photo.
You can click this image to get to a site where you can zoom way in then pan around. When you get there, click the double arrow above the image on the right to see it full frame. Please wait for the resolution to download. You can use the + and – keys to zoom and the arrow keys to scroll. Or use the scroll wheel to zoom and the left mouse to drag.
Below is another 9-shot panorama taken a bit earlier in the morning. At the far right below the sun is part of Brian’s Vermontasaurus.
You can click this image to get to a site where you can zoom way in then pan around. When you get there, click the double arrow above the image on the right to see it full frame. Please wait for the resolution to download. You can use the + and – keys to zoom and the arrow keys to scroll. Or use the scroll wheel to zoom and the left mouse to drag.
This is an Experimental Balloon Meet. Although some of the balloons look a bit conventional, all are welcome. Some balloonists get airborne in lawn chairs instead of baskets, and sometimes even less.
If the wind is light Brian might cruise around the field in a balloon with a rudder and maneuvered by a propeller attached to his basket as in the photo below.
On the first evening of the 2016 Experimental Balloon Meet, one of the first balloons to launch was the “Scrap Palace”. This is the same balloon I flew with Brian when he set his 10,000 hour aloft record. The image at the right below shows a short tethered ride in NH after nightfall after completing that record.
The evening of Friday May 20 had a light breeze. So the balloons launched and flew away.
Photographers scrambled to capture them before they left.
Some of the balloons were creatively decorated.
At 6:30 AM the next morning there were already a number of balloons aloft, but the wind was light so they stayed in the vicinity. The panorama below shows the scene. You can click this image to get to a site where you can zoom way in then pan around. When you get there, click the double arrow above the image on the right to see it full frame. Please wait for the resolution to download. You can use the + and – keys to zoom and the arrow keys to scroll. Or use the scroll wheel to zoom and the left mouse to drag.
The sky was filling up and people were enjoying the scene.
Young children were having fun running around the airfield.
Rick Sheppe was taking off and landing in his piper cub at the far end of the runway. I flew in this plane with him on an assignment for Upper Valley Life a few years ago and later took a short flight to photograph the 5th Vermont Pond Hockey Championships from above for the Lake Morey Resort. For both of these flights the wheels were replaced by skis.
Since the wind was very light, Brian began inflating a giant fish balloon.
Hanging off from his basket was a gasoline engine with propeller.
This allowed Brian to cruise around the airport at will.
More and more balloons were getting inflated.
People were using many different devices to photograph the action.
The early light created some interesting shadows on the balloons.
Brian continued to cruise around the airfield. “Scrap Palace” drifted behind the museum. You can see a row of old balloon sewing machines in the second floor windows.
Near the airport was a church and an interesting old barn that made for an unusual foreground.
Meanwhile a balloonist from Maine was putting on a show with his legs and moppet.
Brian finally landed. He coaxed kids and others to help fold up his fish balloon while Tina photographed the proceedings. Then he gave three of them a ride.
Saturday evening was a full-fledged picnic. Lots of people and kids everywhere. It was a great scene, heartwarming and fun.
Someone had sewn balloons together to create a large tent and was blowing them open with a fan. The kids loved it.
Nearby, balloons were being inflated.
A couple in a double seat prepared to lift off.
Families and young children enjoyed the show.
Brian gave some folks a ride this Saturday evening, launching a bit after 7 PM.
It was certainly a great event for balloonists and spectators.
Here are more photos from the 11th Experimental Balloon and Airship Meet in 2016.
Here are more balloon photos from previous events:
Brian’s Balloon Museum and the 2014 Experimental Balloon and Airship Meet