photo by Talia Hodge
photo by Talia Hodge
photo by Talia Hodge
photo by Talia Hodge
photo by Talia Hodge
photo by Talia Hodge
photo by Talia Hodge
photo by Talia Hodge
photo by Talia Hodge
You experience everything all at once. From Heaven Bound Ascensions’ hot air balloon, you might see otters and beavers in the Cuyahoga River, red foxes and deer running through the forest, the expansive Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. blimp hangar at Wingfoot Lake State Park and picturesque ponds near charming farmhouses. You are in perfect harmony with the panorama surrounding you, and it’s all more beautiful from the sky.
“It’s like all of the sudden you’re taking in the whole world,” says Denny Welser, a licensed aeronaut who has done about 4,000 flights and is president of the Tallmadge-based company.
Up to six passengers and a pilot launch from the Kent-Ravenna area. The balloon floats with the wind at about 1,000 feet for about an hour. Passengers can see up to 60 miles away, including the Cleveland and Akron skylines and Kent State University. But the valleys, lakes, rivers, streams and wildlife are most majestic. Welser sometimes flies passengers past Chagrin Falls’ waterfall or West Branch State Park’s lake, and they gaze at the balloon’s reflection in the water. Sometimes he dips down so passengers can pluck leaves from trees.
Upon landing, passengers enjoy a Champagne toast. People have flown to propose, celebrate anniversaries or check off their bucket lists, including a spry 100-year-old man, and are stunned by the adventure.
“They realize how much fun it was feeling like a bird up in the air,” Welser says.
