Hot air ballooning is the world’s oldest form of aviation and air travel. In 1783, the Montgolfier brothers of Annonay, France, made the first successful balloon flight in a balloon filled with smoke from a straw-fed fire. Today, 232 years later, ballooning has become a recreational and competitive sport.

Aroostook County shares a place in ballooning history as the home to two famous Transatlantic Balloon Flights. In 1978, the Double Eagle II launched from Presque Isle and made the first successful crossing of the Atlantic. In 1984, Joe Kittinger became the first person to make the solo Transatlantic balloon journey, launching from Caribou. That tradition continued last summer as Jonathan Trappe launched his attempted trans-Atlantic balloon flight using 365 individual helium balloons.

With the creation of what was to become the Crown of Maine Balloon Fest 11 years ago, balloons have become an annual tradition, bringing color to the sky and visitors to the region.