The glorious hot air balloon ride over Mt Kilimanjaro
Arrival at Amboseli National Park. PHOTO | POOL
What you need to know:
Location: Amboseli National Park
Driving time: 4 hours
How we got there: Isuzu MU-X, a seven seater family car, or the 14 seater locally assembled and designed game viewer, tailor made for safaris.
Balloon ride cost: Sh45,000 per person including a champagne breakfast
We leave Oltukai Lodge at 5:00am and drive to the offices of Kilimanjaro Balloon Safaris. First I sign an indemnity form then head to the tea and coffee station and pour myself a cuppa while waiting for everyone to finish signing up. Afterwards we walk with the captain, Daniel Beckwith, to the site where a deflated balloon is slowly being filled with hot air. He gives us a safety briefing and introduces the rest of his team: at least five of them are all called Daniel! We watch them inflate the balloon, and as it fills up, it lifts from the ground into an upright position. The balloon's lift comes from hot air which is slightly lighter than the surrounding cold atmosphere.
