The opportunity arises, so to speak, on Friday when a private company begins offering rides over the 843-acre park for $25 per adult and $17.50 for kids.

Other than the wicker basket accommodating a pilot and four passengers, there's not much to suggest the Jules Verne classic, "Around the World in 80 Days." No roaring flame providing hot air; instead the balloon is filled with helium, an inert, nonflammable gas. And no soaring for miles; the 45-foot-diameter envelope is tethered to the ground and raised and lowered by a winch for a 10-minute hover above the park.