Weather is always a factor when it comes to hot air ballooning, and it won’t be any different this weekend for the 49th Great Wellsville Balloon Rally.
It is the busiest weekend of the year in Wellsville, where four scheduled launches over three days will send nearly 30 colorful hot air balloons soaring from Island Park.
The rally begins Friday night with opening ceremonies and the first flights. Officials said 29 balloons have entered the rally, including four new pilots.
Admission is free to the event that brings thousands to the Allegany County village each July. Souvenirs are available at the Balloon Rally Store in Island Park.
Great Wellsville Balloon Rally launch schedule
In addition to balloon launches, the rally includes a Main Street festival on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., a Friday night afterglow and Saturday night fireworks at dusk.
How weather could impact the Great Wellsville Balloon Rally
When it comes to flying, balloon pilots are looking for calm winds not much faster than 5 miles per hour, comfortable temperatures and no thunderstorms within 80 miles of Wellsville.
The Wellsville rally must also navigate any lingering haze from the Canadian wildfires that have kept air quality levels elevated across the region. An Air Quality Health Advisory is currently scheduled to expire at midnight Thursday.
Balloonmeister Tony Saxton makes the final determination on whether it is safe to fly.
“Right now, the forecast for the Balloon Rally is that we are going to launch them,” said a confident Balloon Rally chairman, Brad Thompson. “We were hoping for two out of four, but we might get all four in. You never know.”
Thompson said the rally will go forward even with elevated air levels, but he said the smoky skies will bear watching if they persist deep into the weekend.
“The biggest problem from the smoke is visibility for the pilots once they get in the air. Then again, Tony will make that decision,” Thompson said.
The 2025 Balloon Rally chalked up four successful launches, after the getting off three of four in 2024.
Friday weather outlook
The first scheduled launch of the rally is probably its best bet to go off without a hitch.
The National Weather Service forecast calls for calm, light winds out of the northwest, with temperatures falling from a daytime high of about 83 to the 70s by 6 p.m.
Forecasters don’t see any threat of rain at 6 p.m.
Rain is possible late Friday night, according to the forecasters, but thunderstorms should not pose a threat for rally opening ceremonies and the first mass balloon launch.
Several balloons are expected to take take part in an afterglow following the Friday night mass balloon launch.
Saturday weather outlook
Will the weather cooperate enough to allow two mass balloon launches? It could get tricky.
Expect winds out of the southwest from 7-13 miles per hour, the National Weather Service says.
The day’s high temperature will be around 76 degrees.
There is an 80% chance of precipitation at some point on Saturday, but the percentages drop during the launch windows to 35% at 6 a.m. and 40% chance at 6 p.m.
In addition to the balloon launches, the popular Main Street Festival is also scheduled for Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Some balloon teams will offer tethered rides after both the Friday night and Saturday night launches, according to the organizing committee.
Sunday weather outlook
Sunday could bring some raindrops very early, but Weather Service forecasters see the wet stuff moving out of the area and giving way to mostly sunny conditions for the morning launch.
The Weather Service forecast is for northwest winds at about 8 miles per hour.
Pick up free ride to rally site on shuttle bus
Because parking at Island Park is severely limited, the best bet for folks driving to Wellsville from out of town is hitching a free ride on a shuttle bus.
The service has pick up points at the Northern Lights Candles Plaza on Route 417 and the Tops Plaza on Bolivar Road.
The shuttles will run every 20 minutes on Friday and Saturday, beginning at 4 p.m. and continuing until 10 or 10:30 p.m. depending on rally events for each night.
This article originally appeared on The Evening Tribune: How weather, haze could impact Great Wellsville Balloon Rally
Reporting by Neal Simon, Hornell Evening Tribune / The Evening Tribune
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Neal Simon, Hornell Evening Tribune | USA TODAY Network
