“It was absolutely superb”: this hot air balloon pilot amazed by his flight over the Haute-Loire

“Is this the Polignac fortress? » For his return to the Altiligrian sky after 40 years of absence, Carles Lladó has the eyes of a child, admiring the monuments one after the other. With his partner, Montse Diaz, they traveled from Barcelona to participate in the 42nd international hot air balloon gathering. “We go on a few dates every year. This time, we decided to come here because it is an important gathering with a good atmosphere, explains the pilot. We have already been to France several times, to Annonay, Lille and Metz. »Throughout the weekend it was possible to enjoy the fabulous spectacle in the sky. Photo Guillaume Chorin

A flight over the Loire and the monuments of the department

A return to Haute-Loire made at the best of times. With radiant sunshine on Friday morning, the hot air balloons were able to take off for the first time in Goudet around 8:30 a.m. “We chose this location because the wind is from the south. Like this, we should go back towards Le Puy,” explains Jean-Marc Guérin, president of Montgolfière en Velay and organizer of the event. After a quick journey from Le Puy, including a notable passage at the Fangeas roundabout where statues of one of the emblems of the department, the Green Lens, stand, Carles Lladó prepares his balloon alongside around thirty other pilots came from all over Europe. If many French people are present, many representatives from other countries have also attended, such as Switzerland, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Scotland and even Sweden.

An ever-present passion

The participation of the Spanish driver, the first in forty years, is a beautiful symbol. Working in the manufacture of hot air balloon canvas, he is at the origin of Jean-Marc Guérin's new balloon. “These canvases are more ecological and very light,” relishes the local pilot.
After a quick installation, Carles' golden balloon takes off above Goudet to follow the bends of the Loire and its autumn colors. “The trees are magnificent. It’s much greener than in Spain,” smiles the 66-year-old man.

A soft landing

With more than four decades of flying under his belt, his passion remains the same. “Every flight always has its share of excitement. At home, I must have made 400-500 flights and they are all different,” relishes the Catalan.Carles Lladó has been flying for over forty years. Photo gc

After a journey as calm as it is relaxing, the thirty hot air balloons approach Le Puy and its monuments. Here again Carles Lladó is under the spell. Notre-Dame du Puy, the Saint-Joseph d'Espaly statue, the Saint-Michel chapel or even the Polignac fortress, the pilot cannot help but take photos between two bursts of gas to keep his balloon at the right height. Unfortunately for him, with five flights on the three-day program and a return to Spain planned for Sunday evening, tourism was not on the weekend's menu. The hot air balloons flew over a sea of ​​clouds as they approached Le Puy on Friday morning. Photo gc
“We won't have time to visit, but if we have to go somewhere, it will be to the cathedral,” he said on Friday morning. After passing right next to the Polignac fortress, it is time to land after more than an hour of flight. Thanks to ideal weather and the piloting talent of our guide for the day, the balloon lands calmly in the middle of a field. “It was absolutely superb,” he exclaims once he reaches the bottom. After breathing for a few minutes, the time has come to proceed to the least pleasant moment of the day, the storage… His wife, who followed the theft from her car, comes to lend a hand to fold the canvas, put away the equipment in the small trailer before going to Saint-Paulien to share a meal with all the pilots of the event. A well-deserved break before heading back to another place in the department to take off again and once again enjoy the landscape offered by the riches of Haute-Loire.

Guillaume Chorin