PLT OF HOT AIR BALLOON ATTEMPTING EARLY LNDG BECAUSE OF FOG WAS UNABLE IN RESIDENTIAL AREA; ASCENDED AND EVENTUALLY DRIFTED TO AN OPEN FIELD OUTSIDE OF TOWN.

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I LAUNCHED MY BALLOON FROM YOLO COUNTY FAIRGNDS. WHILE CLBING TO ALT I NOTICED A THICK HAZE TURNING TO FOG FORMING ON THE W SIDE OF TOWN (WOODLAND; CA). FOG IS NORMAL HERE IN WINTER BUT HIGHLY UNUSUAL IN SUMMER. CONCERNED THAT THIS FOG WOULD PROGRESS AND DEVELOP RAPIDLY BENEATH AND AROUND ME; DROPPING VISIBILITY TO BELOW VFR MINIMUMS; I IMMEDIATELY ANNOUNCED MY INTENTION TO LAND ASAP TO MY PAX AND BY RADIO TO MY CHASE CREW ON THE GND. I ALSO HAD THE CREW ADVISE ANOTHER PLT; STILL INFLATING AT FAIRGNDS; THAT UNFORECASTED FOG WAS DEVELOPING AND I SUGGESTED HE ABORT HIS FLT; WHICH HE DID. AT 1000 FT AGL THERE WAS VIRTUALLY NO WIND MOVEMENT. AS IT WAS MY DESIRE TO FLY OUT OF TOWN; CLRING THE CONGESTED AREAS BELOW ME; I DSNDED TO 600 OR 700 FT AGL AND FOUND A SLOW E WIND THAT WOULD CARRY ME AWAY FROM FOG. UNFORTUNATELY THIS WIND WAS VERY SLOW; PERHAPS 1 OR 2 MPH; AND I WAS CONCERNED I WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO CLR CITY LIMITS IN TIME TO FIND SUITABLE LNDG SITE BEFORE FOG CAUGHT UP TO ME. A BLOCK OR 2 AHEAD IN MY FLT PATH WAS A SMALL OPEN PARK AREA WITH AN ADJACENT SCHOOL PARKING LOT AND WIDE STREET. THE AREA WAS CLR OF PWRLINES AND OTHER OBSTRUCTIONS SO I BEGAN AN ATTEMPT TO LAND. I INSTRUCTED MY PAX OF MY PLANS; BRIEFED HER; THEN RADIOED MY CHASE CREW OF MY INTENT TO LAND ASKING THEM TO GET UNDER ME IN THE EVENT I CHOSE TO EXECUTE A DROP-LINE LNDG. AS I CONTINUED THE LNDG APCH VARIABLE SURFACE WINDS BEGAN TO MOVE THE BALLOON JUST SLIGHTLY L OF THE INTENDED FLT PATH UNTIL; AS I LEVELED OFF AT ROOF-TOP HEIGHT; IT BECAME APPARENT I COULD NOT LAND SAFELY IN THE PARK OR PARKING LOT. 2 CREW MEMBERS WERE BENEATH ME SO I MOMENTARILY CONSIDERED A DROP-LINE LNDG BY HAVING THEM PULL ME DOWN INTO THE STREET. MANY RESIDENTS HAD EMERGED FROM THEIR HOMES; MOST TALKING AND WAVING TO US AND SAYING HOW BEAUTIFUL THE BALLOON WAS. MY PAX NOTED 1 MAN SAYING 'YOU CAN'T LAND HERE'; THOUGH I DID NOT SEE OR HER THIS. WITH THAT MANY PEOPLE AROUND AND 2 CREW UNTRAINED IN DROP-LINE PROCS; I DECIDED THE RISK OF LNDG WAS TOO GREAT; CLBED BACK TO 500-700 FT AGL WHERE I SLOWLY DRIFTED OUT OF TOWN UNTIL I EXECUTED A SAFE LNDG IN A CUT HAYFIELD. FORTUNATELY THE FOG WAS LOCALIZED TO THE W SIDE OF TOWN; MY E FLT PATH CARRIED ME AWAY FROM IT AND VFR MINS WERE MAINTAINED THROUGHOUT THE FLT. SEVERAL BALLOONS LAUNCHING EARLIER THAN I WERE BLOWN W AND LANDED BECAUSE OF THE DEVELOPING FOG.