Chasing in Dixie Alley

[Bob Hartig]

A comment by Jim Leonard in a different thread inspired the following question. I think it's appropriate for the advanced discussions; mod, if you feel it belongs in the beginner's section, please move it at your discretion.

I'm curious how many on Stormtrack chase with some regularity in the Dixie Alley--i.e. the Southeast from Arkansas and Mississippi east to Georgia. It's an area that doesn't get much discussion on Stormtrack. But after reading some stats on it, I think I need to think more seriously about taking a few opportunities down there. On an average, February is the month when tornadic activity starts heating up and moving toward the peak season of March, April, and May, with the spike being in April.

What I wonder about isn't the availability of storms, but their chaseability. I'm not very familiar with that part of the country, but what I have seen of it suggests to me that forests and overall terrain present considerable challenges in many areas. Another concern is the amount of available daylight, and the fact that many tornadoes in the Southeast occur at night.

What thoughts, insights, and experiences do folks here have to offer? If you're familiar with chasing in Dixie Alley, where are some of your favorite areas, and which areas would you definitely avoid?

 

[Danny Neal]

I chased LA/MS in 2002. Didn't see anything at all. Wasn't worth it to try to keep up with the storms with the winding roads and forest terrain. US 84 E and W from Natchez to Waynesboro is beautiful scenery....for sightseeing lol Not much in the way of chase-able terrain down there. In the same year I did chase SE AR and I know there are chase-able areas of SE AR and NW MS. Plus LA isn't bad either. Once you hit middle Mississippi and certainly the E and SE portions of the state towards Alabama, you need to start thinking about what good hill you are going to want to be on to see the horizon. Obviously there are good area mixed in, so I will give the floor to those with more experience in this area. Those were just my personal experiences.

 

[Jason Boggs]

Not much insight from me, but I absolutely won't chase anywhere east of I-35. Just my personal preference.

 

[Adam Lucio]

Eastern AR is great chasing terrain. The big hazard there is flash flooding though and it is the only area in the county so far where Ive had to turn around due to flooded roads...I ventured into MS once but not too deep, its pretty flat near the river valley and we did have excellent visibility near Clarksdale where we caught several distant powerflashs on 5-10-08 caused by....something.

From what Ive read [but not observed first hand] is allot of tornadoes down there are the dreaded HP or embedded squall line type scenarios, not a whole lot of classic structure to be seen in those areas but theres always exceptions.

The terrain map on google or a topographic map can highlight localized areas of more favoarable terrain.

 

[Clarence Bennett]

Well, living in Dixie Alley, I must say that chasing in these parts is definitely different than what most of you are used to in the plains. The road networks are so different, but do-able in my opinion. You just have to really put some thought into your chase and constantly keep one eye on the gps. You can't just blindly race after a storm, knowing that there is going to be an out if you get behind. It is definitely a challenge, but I will take it any day of the week. Another plus, is that the roads aren't crowded with chasers.

Eastern AR, MO bootheel, W TN and N MS are awesome! And, the thing I love about living in Nashville is that I can drive to Little Rock and chase all the way back home using I-40 to catch up as it runs NE with typical storm motions.

Draw a line from Little Rock all the way to Poplar Bluff, MO. Anythng W of that line is junk. E of there to the MS River is flatter than Kansas.

Come on down, try it out! I would love to see some you out in our territory.

 

[Dan Robinson]

It's doable, but more challenging. When I can do it, it has been fun. It's really not too much different than chasing eastern OK or Missouri as far as roads or visibility.

 

[Heidi Farrar]

I second Clarence's advice on the Little Rock-Poplar Bluff, MO line. However, a chaser should also keep Crowley's Ridge in mind; this is a swath of hills and trees that runs north-south from roughly Forrest City, AR to around Piggot, with the widest area being north of Jonesboro. It's not the Ozarks, but it's also not flat Delta land. Check it out on a topo map and you'll see what I mean.

For northeast AR, meaning east of the Black River and north of I-40, there are several other things a chaser wants to really be aware of. While the Delta Region roads are more "grid-like" and there are good options for travelling southwest-northeast, river crossings can pose a big problem... and there are a lot of rivers and "ditches" in this area. This is especially true if you're trying to cross the Mississippi. As far as I am aware, there are only three places state-wide to cross the Mississippi, so be advised.

Secondary roads state-wide are very often unpaved and in major disrepair, and as Adam mentioned, flash flooding can be a major issue, with "low water bridges" being the norm rather than a real bridge over creeks and streams. I have to keep this in mind at all times when I am out even short distances because I want to be able to simply get home! Here's what I'm faced with on both the north and south, which are my only options:

north:

south:

Also, while the Delta area (aside from Crowley's Ridge) is very flat, there are still areas where there are a lot of trees. Again, it is not like the Ozarks, but there are a lot more trees than one would find in the most-favored chase areas of the Plains.

Data connections with AT&T and Alltel are okay in most areas where it is flat (I don't know enough about success with other carriers to comment). I wouldn't count on a connection in hilly areas at all. My mobile internet experience with AT&T in the Ozarks is not good; cell signal strength is generally good enough for calls but not good enough for the internet, so having a good nowcaster ready is really a better option than heading to the Ozarks expecting to be able to use radar. (I imagine an external antenna would probably help, though, but I have not tried it.) A positive is that the Little Rock area has 3G with AT&T.

Everyone knows about the usually ridiculous storm mode (HP and/or squall-line imbedded) and speed (50+ MPH) for AR and surrounding areas, not to mention the likelihood of the storms happening or continuing well after dark. In the almost 6 years that I've been here, I have seen very few classic supercells in north-central AR and/or south-central MO during daylight hours. April 2, 2006 and Sept. 22, 2006 are the only two days I can think of that resulted in storms that offered any realistic chase opportunities with a starting point in the eastern Ozarks, as far as being able to see storms coming from the west and having time to get into any kind of safe position to chase using decent roads goes. On that note: Sept. 22 I stayed home (ended up in a shelter!); if I had chased, I would have been unable to get home, first because a tornado hit 1/2 mile north of my house and blocked the road with trees, then the road was flash-flooded; the tornado actually hit in the same spot shown in the "north" photo, above! If you look hard you can see trees that are still laying on the hillside to the left of the road, as well as a large tree "spike" that's a remnant of a large oak that was taken out by that (F-1) tornado... Also, April 2 quickly turned into a Delta region event, so that doesn't apply as much to north-central AR; May 2 '08 is another a good example of a decent chase day for the Delta region.

I guess my "conclusion" would be this: Northeast Arkansas is definitely chasable, but there is a lot more to be taken into consideration from a navigational standpoint when chasing here. I can't recommend chasing west of the Black River to anyone except in very special circumstances.

 

[Dennis Sherrod]

Heidi,
First I see you posted above our backyard Alabama Swimming Pool. Now to answer your questions, I go along with Clarence's assessment to a large part. The mid AR, Mississippi River region of MS southward to mid state LA is pretty good and fun.
Alabama...What can I say? 418 miles yesterday. in Central AL. Saw lots of trees, lots of hills, and lots of trees. Saw a few swirly clouds between all of it. As Ben Holcomb said yesterday after seeing my video stream, He said he saw some rain wrapped trees.
Most tornadoes here, from my perspective, are rain wrapped and you get to see something through the trees that you are not sure of. The road system is lots and lots of curves and you can find yourself in some hairy situations while trying to get into position or out of the way.
N. GA. NE AL. forget about it. Southern GA. would have to be really good, but is possible.
NW and N Central AL. is pretty good until Huntsville, then mountains eastward. South AL and FL. Panhandle are fairly good.

 

[Ben Holcomb]

Eastern AR along the river was good. Bootheel is excellent. AL and MS, at least the northwest/northeast corners (Where AL/TN/MS come together) is pretty dense forests, but there are still places you can find to observe.

Here is a picture of the Missouri Bootheel region and another

This album should give you a good idea of Eastern Arkansas

Even Western Tennessee isn't too bad, and I don't think it'd be too hard to chase into central TN. Eastern TN would be a bit of a different story, and into Georgia where you've got mountains and TONS of trees. If you're into chasing in this then by all means go to Western NC/Northern SC/Northern GA/Eastern TN


And yes, I saw lots of rain wrapped trees on dennis' stream. If things hadn't been SCREAMING away from him at 50-70 mph it might not have been as bad.

 

[Lanny Dean]

Back in my "early days" when Randy Hicks and I were chasing together, we use to chase that area quite often (this would be pre- 1999). In fact, Randy was the one who introduced me to that area back then. I personally have had some success in this area, most notably April of 1999?. Randy and I intercepted a nice supercell and tornado in Stoddard Co. MO near Advance. I have always really liked the Missouri boothill and South into Eastern Arkansas and points East but as Heidi says, you have to be VERY careful with "local" road conditions.
I have not chased that area since 2006 but Randy contiues to do so and has had much luck.

I might add: becareful where you try to cross the river though, as some roads are not bridged even though they appear to be on a map.

 

[Bob Hartig]

Is it any wonder that I love Stormtrack? The members here are the best! Lots of information, freely shared. You've all been very gracious. Thank you!

 

[Wes Carter]

I live in Middle TN and have successfully chased a few tubes in this area. What presents a challenge in much of TN, KY, AL, and GA is not only the hills but also the dense trees in much of the area. I am always in awe when I go out to the plains where I can see so much of the storm's structures that is so challenging to see here. Also, the supercells tend to be HP more often. The road network is not a grid. Many of the roads were originally laid out in the 1800's and followed natural terrain features such as streams, valleys, and wildlife trails. And there is more traffic here than in the Great Plains.

If you ever make it to Middle TN/Northern AL to chase, drop me a line.

 

[nickgrillo]

I can definitely vouch for the MO bootheel, it offers some INCREDIBLE views... I chased a slow-moving supercell from it's initiation in the northern portion of the bootheel on 5-25-06 and I got some incredible views as it slowly meandered southeast (that storm briefly lowered it's base and exhibited a nice wall cloud, but too much insolation and associated convective mixing with an already shallow low-level moist layer ended up screwing that storm). I've chased central MO on a few different occasions, including 3-12-2006 and 4-2-2006 -- both days featuring extremely fast-moving, kinematically-driven supercells -- with views generally obscured by trees and hills besides for the eastern half of the state. I also chased a nocturnal tornadic supercell from southeast AR into northwest MS on 4-29-2005... Once we passed Indianola and continued east to Greenwood, foilage became more dense and good viewing locations became nearly non-existent.

Western KY also offers some good viewing locations.

I don't have any stuff online right now, besides for those two pics hosted off PhotoSig. Otherwise, I'd post some caps from said regions.

 

[Bob Hartig]

I've actually chased in the MO bootheel and eastern AR. That's the one part of Dixie Alley I'm somewhat familiar with. Heidi, I threaded through Crowley's Ridge on the way to Little Rock on a 1,800 mile, nonstop bust chase. I know that, barring the Ridge, the area on the Mississippi flood plain is great chasing, and Memphis isn't bad, but the caveats about river crossings and flooding are much appreciated. The rest of Dixie Alley, once you get away from the Mississippi flatlands, is what I've wondered about. As for Missouri, barring the bootheel, I haven't really thought of that as Dixie Alley, but the definition of exactly where any of the so-called "alleys" begin and end appears to be somewhat subjective anyway. I've done a few chases around the Columbia, MO, area, including 6/12-06 and 1/7/-8, and in my experience, the topography is a pain in the butt for the reasons Nick has stated.

From the sound of it, a lot of Dixie Alley is unchaseable, but I also gather that, in addition to the Mississippi floodplain, there are some other parts that aren't bad. I'm going to have to sit down with a map and crunch these notes.

Again, thanks all.

 

[Randy Bowers]

Take a look at this map: Mississippi Embayment. It clearly shows the area that others have mentioned, from the bootheel south and southwest along and either side of the Mississippi River to northeast Louisiana. Aside from storm mode (which most often isn't as ideal as out west), it's a great place to chase. Of course, there are always exceptions to storm mode .