Ballooning and Snow

So the alarm went off at 5.45. Classically I had been awake for an hour or two before that! We got out the motel by 6.45 and arrived at the balloon location just a minute or two late. Everyone else was there and as soon as we got on the minibus we were off.

Had to fill in our details on the way, guessed the weights of us all a bit. We got to the first potential launch site but a helium balloon test showed there was too much wind to inflate the balloon, so we went to a second venue at the Showground in Hororata. The basked and balloon were unpacked from the trailer and laid out. Burners were checked, providing a good photo opportunity! We were briefed on how to get into the basket and where and then the balloon was inflated with two large fans, cold air to begin with.. Once it was pretty full the burners were used to heat the air and the balloon rose up. On the given signal we climbed into the basked, us four had one corner segment for ourselves.

The last few ropes were clipped up and released and then effortlessly we were floating, quickly rising to quite a height and soon to cruising altitude of about 3,500 feet. The climb was serene and oddly silent. One thing I hadn't realised was that you don't feel the wind in the balloon, as the balloon is moving at the same speed as the wind - only feel it when the altitude changes and wind direction moves until the balloon readjusts.

We drifted along, seeing great views of the mountains we would be driving through later and learning about the irrigation scheme being installed on a large scale to stop dairy and beef farmers drawing water from the ground. Much of the Canterbury Plains are beef and dairy rather than sheep now.

A camera was swung out on a rope beyond the balloon and pictures taking of us up in the air. Landing was interesting as we bobbed up and down trying to find the right winds to take us to a suitable site. The landing was pretty smooth - we had all been briefed on how to brace ourselves and hold on in case the basked tipped on its side, but in the end it stayed upright - to Ed's disappointment. We helped to fold up the balloon and bag it up then got a well earned glass of champagne and a muffin. The champagne is apparently a tradition of balloonists dating back to the Montgolfier brothers. Some more photos and we learned the balloon cost about NZ$250k.

We were driven back to the start and were off in our car by 10.30. I'd had a call just before we went in the balloon to say Tasha's bag would be delivered to the Darfield Motel by 10am so we popped back there and were reunited. It just about fitted in the car!

Then we drove off to Arthur's Pass about 1.5 hours away. The mountains got ever closer and the scenery was spectacular, but lost on the kids who were asleep in the back. No surprise given the early start and Sam and I were struggling to stay awake by the time we arrived. We went for lunch at the Wobbly Kea - food was decent but it was surprisingly cold inside, they didn't have a fire going it seemed.

It had started to rain about half an hour from Arthur's Pass and this continued as we walked to the Visitor Centre. We decided to do the short 10 minute Millennium Walk then carry on to the 1 hour Devil's Punchbowl - a large waterfall.

Despite the rain, we started in good spirits and saw a pretty waterfall on the first walk. Heading across a couple of bridges (10 person max weight) there was old snow in patches on the ground from the last fall. The rain started to turn to sleet and as we started to climb up through the forest it was snowing, The walk up was quite steep with a lot of steps and we found it hard going as there isn't much to see en route. We were overtaken by a bunch of students and ploughed on to the viewing platform with great views of the Falls. Ed and I climbed down a bit to the water's edge below the platform. Some of the students were climbing right up the river - rather them than us on slippery and snowy rocks!

The way down was easier and we got back to the shop to get a few things for tea then drove to the Alpine Lodge. Got a warm welcome and the room had a nice fire and those all important electric blankets. No rush in the morning, just need to be out by 10 - snow permitting....Read more