A HOT AIR BALLOON PLT TOOK OFF IN IMC CONDITIONS; THEN CLBED TO ON TOP.

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MORNING FLT IN A HOT AIR BALLOON. ARRIVED AT LAUNCH FIELD AFTER SUNRISE. THE LAUNCH FIELD IS AN EMPTY FIELD APPROX 1 MI S OF HILLSBOROUGH; NC. HILLSBOROUGH IS ALMOST 1/2 WAY BTWN RALEIGH AND GREENSBORO ON I-40. I HAD A DUATS WX BRIEFING SHOWING 700 FT MEASURED CEILING; 5 MI VISIBILITY AND FOG AT RDU. GSO WAS RPTING CLR BELOW 12000 FT AND 7 MI VISIBILITY. BOTH ARPTS HAD LESS THAN 2 DEG SPREAD IN TEMP/DEWPOINT. WHEN WE ARRIVED AT THE LAUNCH FIELD; THE SKY WAS CLR; NO FOG OR CLOUDS. WE SET UP AND PREPPED THE BALLOON. THE LAUNCH PROC TOOK APPROX 15 MINS. UPON LAUNCH; I REALIZED THAT THE AREA HAD FOGGED IN. AGL HEIGHT WAS ONLY 20 OR 30 FT; I WAS CLBING AT 200 FPM. I TRIED TO ABORT TKOF AND LAND; BUT WAS APCHING TREES AND PWR LINES. I CLBED ABOVE THE FOG LAYER; WHICH WAS APPROX 100-200 FT THICK; TO AN ALT OF 1000 FT AGL. AFTER 30 MINS THE FOG HAD DISSIPATED AND I LANDED SAFELY. NO DAMAGE TO THE ACFT OR PROPERTY ON THE GND AND NOBODY WAS HURT. IN RETROSPECT; I SHOULD HAVE PAID CLOSER ATTN TO THE TEMP/DEWPOINT SPREAD. ALSO; I SHOULD HAVE BEEN MORE AWARE OF THE CHANGING CONDITIONS AS I PREPARED FOR LAUNCH.