Virtual balloon launch scratched because of weather

There’s no balloon festival this year but a couple balloon pilots hoped to take off Saturday morning.

Posted August 15, 2020

Updated August 17, 2020

This morning, we hoped to show two Maine balloon pilots and their balloons in a virtual launch. It was to be a tribute to the Great Falls Balloon Festival, which had to cancel it’s 2020 festival because of the pandemic.

Our virtual launch was based on two balloons that planned to go up Saturday morning. But much like many balloon festival launches, the weather wouldn’t cooperate.

Spectators gather on the pedestrian bridge between Simard-Payne Memorial Park in Lewiston and Bonney Park in Auburn to photograph the successful Saturday morning launch of the 2013 Annual Great Falls Balloon Festival. Many hot air balloons were able to dip their baskets in the waters of the Androscoggin River. Purchase this image

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Spectators gather on the pedestrian bridge between Simard-Payne Memorial Park in Lewiston and Bonney Park in Auburn to photograph the successful Saturday morning launch of the 2013 Annual Great Falls Balloon Festival. Many hot air balloons were able to dip their baskets in the waters of the Androscoggin River. Purchase this image
Balloons take to the skies from Simard Payne Memorial Park in Lewiston during Friday morning's launch of the 2014 Great Falls Balloon Festival. Purchase this image
Wendy Schlotterbeck and her daughter, Hannah Schlotterbeck of Auburn watch as balloons rise above the Androscoggin River during the 2014 Great Falls Balloon Festival on Saturday morning. Purchase this image
Balloons take to the skies from Simard-Payne Memorial Park in Lewiston during Friday morning's launch of the 2014 Great Falls Balloon Festival. Purchase this image
Emily Young, 8, of Auburn gives storm trooper Tim McMahon of Portland a high-five during the 2016 Great Falls Balloon Festival at Simard-Payne Memorial Park in Lewiston on Friday evening. Purchase this image
Fans wave and cheer as one of the final balloons lifts off from Simard-Payne Memorial Park in Lewiston during the 2016 Great Falls Balloon Festival. Purchase this image
Darth Vader and over a dozen other balloons take to the sky during Friday morning's launch as seen from Bill Whidden's Great Balls of Fire balloon after taking off from Simard-Payne Memorial Park at the 2016 Great Falls Balloon Festival. Purchase this image
Balloons take to the sky during Friday morning's launch from Simard-Payne Memorial Park in Lewiston as seen from Bill Whidden's Great Balls of Fire balloon at the 2016 Great Falls Balloon Festival. Purchase this image
Pilot Mark Fritze lifts off from Simard-Payne Memorial Park in Freedom Flyer as Bill Whidden inflates Great Balls of Fire during the 2017 Great Falls Balloon Festival Saturday evening in Lewiston. Purchase this image
The first balloons of the morning lift off during the 2017 Great Falls Balloon Festival.
A pair of balloons does a splash and dash in the Androscoggin River during a Sunday morning's launch at the 2016 Great Falls Balloon Festival. Purchase this image
Honi Glover pilots "Amazing Grace" up and over Simard-Payne Memorial Park during the evening launch of the 2018 Great Falls Balloon Festival in Lewiston on Sunday. Purchase this image
Balloons illuminated from within float tethered above Simard-Payne Memorial Park in Lewiston during the Moonglow demonstration Friday night at 2019 the Great Falls Balloon Festival.
Neon Dreamz pilot Patrick Grogan of North Carolina fires up his balloon at Simard-Payne Memorial Park in Lewiston on Saturday morning during the 2019 Great Falls Balloon Festival. Two balloons inflated but were taken down quickly as a light rain grounded the 3rd scheduled launch in a row. Purchase this image
Great Falls Balloon Festival board member Matt Conklin reaches out and pretends to grab the basket of the Re/Max balloon as it does tethered launches Sunday morning after the launch was canceled in 2019. Purchase this image

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