Chasing in hilly areas???

[Susan Strom]

Hilly? LOL You could say that. I live on the southwest edge of the Tonto National Forest, 3 million acres of ridges, v-canyons and desert that climbs over jagged peaks to the southern edge of the alpine Colorado Plateau. Everything is huge as well as rugged. The National Forest alone is slightly smaller than the state of Connecticut and varies from Sonoran desert (giant saguaro cactus habitat) to alpine. The rough and steep alterations in terrrain make for interesting chasing, but believe it or not, it is easy to see long distances due to lower vegetation in the desert regions and the ability to get up on a high vantage point. I enjoy chasing lightning in the entire state...terrains vary widely. The Plains too are only a day's drive, so I like to drive out there in the springtime.

 

[Justin Turcotte]

I moved from NE to ND last summer and I can honestly say the Red River (of the north) Valley is by far the flattest terrain I've ever seen. Trees are a scarcity. This area has got to be the most ideal in the country for viewing storms but with less than half the frequency of the central plains. I have chased in the NE sandhills which was entertaining as getting on top of the larger hills offered breath taking views. Not many trees to deal with there either. I would think chasing in trees/hills is managable if you can find a clear line of sight on top of a hill. Having lived in the heavily forested northern MN many years ago, I can vouch that it would be chasable from a line of site standpoint, but very far from ideal. You would likely not get a lot of video time of a tornado but you could capture it for atleast a brief period if positioned properly. Lake shores offer nice open areas. Capturing vid of pine trees getting stewn would be pretty wild. Your larger problems would be roads and a tremendous number of trees that are available to fall in high winds. If there is a solid chance of tors up there this summer than I'll give it a shot and report back.

 

[David Drummond]

For those that have never been out here in West Texas on the caprock, it's really hard to wrap your head around how absolutely FLAT and treeless this area is. Here is a pan I did and stitched together of a sunset after a chase one day. You'll have to click it, it's way too wide to show here.

http://wx5tvs.com/chasephotos/2002/2002pic...setpanorama.jpg

 

[Amos Magliocco]

David,

What a great image. This is what I consider "excellent" chase territory. When pics of storms or tornadoes include trees or hills or both, you know it was *not* taken on the Caprock or the Colorado Front Range, the two most amazing areas for chasing in all Tornado Alley.

These spots feel as if they're designed for what we do. Not only are they perfectly flat and unobstructed, but they slope gently upwards for a boost of orographic lifting, and the caprock adds the bonus of canyons east of the escarpment which forecasters like Al Moller believe may channel and enhance SRH for nearby storms.

The most recent tornado-day climatology research from Drs. Doswell and Brooks show that the tornado-day frequency around LBB has almost no variability when measured in five year subsets. What that means is you get as close as possible to a climatological guarantee of tornadoes near the end of May and the beginning of June.

My guess is that we'll see some awesome sights filling that vista in David's image soon.

 

[Mike Peregrine]

The caprock really is a magical place when it comes to storms ... I wish every state had a region just like it. The other thing I really enjoy about Texas is the PEOPLE ... last year when I chased down there my car broke down and a very helpful guy helped me fix it. Turned out he was a local spotter and really interested in storms and we had a great conversation. As I was chasing a tornadic cell near San Angelo I had pulled off into the driveway of a lady who came up to me when she saw what I was doing and said "we love storm chasers! - Why don't you come in when you're done and have some lunch with us?" How often does a person get that kind of response? I'd have a spring home in Throckmorton if I got the chance.

As far as terrain goes, I really like the area from Salina north to Republic Co., KS up into Nebraska on hwy 81 ... you can see for miles and the gentle roll to the countryside really makes for beautiful chase territory.

 

[Mikel Shively]

I live in North Central Missouri which is probably the most hilly area of missouri north of I-70.... I grew up here and know all the roads like the back of my hand, so this is my preferred area to chase in. I know you other chasers just hate my area, but its not so bad if you are used to the terrain and know the road networks.

 

[Perry Williams]

Chasing in hilly terrain can be dangerous....especially in this area (southeast U.S.) where you must deal with lower cloud bases, trees, and often rain wrapped tornadoes...in addition to the hilly terrai. In the southeast many strong and sometimes even violent tornadoes occur during the darkness....after dusk or before dawn. Also, in this area, when intense tornadoes occur, they tend to move very rapidly....50 mph or more. These factors combine to makes chasing risky at best (and even storm spotting a challenge).

I chased quite a bit more while living in central Mississippi (1995-96) than I've ever chased here in northwest Georgia....the terrain near Jackson, MS is flat, but even so, utilized extreme caution when chasing there...didn't take chances (and still observed two tornadoes while living there).

 

[Brian A. Schmidt]

Thanks Perry, I thought this string was dead and didn't bother to check till now. You have a similar situation to mine. Hilly areas present a whole new dimension to chasing and an element of danger. I've been caught by storms in hilly, densely forested areas and I'll admit this has given me butterflies in my gut on occasion. Falling trees don't help either. Stay safe down there in GA.