2011 Storm Chase 17 - July 17th - Dinner Break Desert Chase

Note: This storm chase log is from 2011 but has not been posted yet.

A Sunday evening during the monsoon usually keeps me pretty busy at work, but on my dinner break, I elected to head out to the edge of the desert... just a few minutes from the studio to get some video for the 10PM show.  I also brought along my camera to try and snag some lightning shots.

Big H5 high over the center of the country, nice fetch of moisture through the Rockies.

So, I sat out in the desert, hiding from the rain when I could... it seemed to want to sprinkle a lot.

The only bolt I captured... you have to look real closely to the right of the frame. (click to enlarge)

Nothing too exciting, just some pretty desert vistas.

STATS
Mileage: 18
2011YTD Mileage: 1777
States: Colorado
SPC Risk: Categorical
Max Hail: None
Tornadoes: None
Other Phenomena:  None
Applicable Mesoscale Discussions: None
Applicable Weather Watches: None
Storm Reports for July 17th

Dann.

2011 Storm Chase 14 - July 7th - Lightning Strikes Twice In The Desert

Catching up on a few 2011 entries since I'm still backlogged on 2012 imagery...

This entry details a storm chase from July 7th, 2011.

With the Monsoon in full swing on the Western Slope, I actually started to have a little hope that I'd get the opportunity to see a decent storm or two.  On the previous evening, I scored my first "bolt in frame" shot on the Western Slope, as unmemorable as it was.  This evening yielded yet another possibility for lightning.

A fast-moving shortwave which you can see in the image below was on its way in and by 2Z, convection began to erupt in eastern Utah.  I headed out into the desert to set up and await my chance. 

I found a nice spot to park, turned on some jams and awaited the storms.  Luckily, as the shortwave passed, we actually got surface-based convection in the valley!  (That's a rarity).  This time around, I was much more successful at capturing some good images.  Here are a few:

Finally, I was starting to feel a little better about the weather out here. 

Detail Map:

STATS
Mileage: 16
2011YTD Mileage: 1662
States: Colorado
SPC Risk: Categorical
Max Hail: None
Tornadoes: None
Other Phenomena:  None
Applicable Mesoscale Discussions: None
Applicable Weather Watches: None
Storm Reports for July 7th

Dann.

2011 Storm Chase 13 - July 6th - Lightning Finally Strikes In The North Desert

When I moved to the Western Slope, I knew that storm chasing opportunities would be few and far between, but I found solace in the fact that the monsoon would bring good lightning.

Monsoon moisture began to work its way into the area in mid-June and I spent quite a few nights trying to get a bolt in frame; a task which seemed easy at times in the Front Range.  I was finding it quite difficult on the Western Slope, however.  But that didn't deter me.  I obediently drove into the desert at any threat of late convection hoping for a chance.

On this particular Wednesday evening, the tail end of a shortwave riding atop the ridge was drifting through northwest Colorado.  It had been quite hot during the daytime and relatively moist for the desert.  As night began to fall, the dewpoint increased into the 50s.

In the early evening, storms began to fire over the Tavaputs Plateaus in eastern Utah and then drifted across the border.  I left my house after 8PM or so and drove west on I-70.  I left the highway at Loma and then drove north on Colorado 139 out of the irrigated valley and into the rolling hills of the desert.

I recall the surface winds being pretty strong as I pulled to the side of the road to shoot.  As the storms road the Book Cliffs to the north, they began to fizzle to some extent.  Still, there was a bit of lightning and out of persistence, I was able to capture my first Western Slope spark in frame.  It's nothing exceptional, but at the time, I was relieved and excited. 

Intra-cloud lightning over Book Cliffs.

I stayed at that spot for about a half hour before the storms really died down.  Though the first lightning shot was the best, I was able to take a couple of images that were keepers of some sort; at least showing the scene in a way that I wanted to keep.

Looking north-northwest on Colorado 139 toward the Book Cliffs.

Lightning illuminates the crest of the Book Cliffs

Satisfied, I headed home.  My first non-bust lightning chase of 2011 on the Western Slope!  Luckily, it wouldn't be my last. 

Map:

STATS
Mileage: 44
2011YTD Mileage: 1646
States: Colorado
SPC Risk: Categorical
Max Hail: None
Tornadoes: None
Other Phenomena:  None
Applicable Mesoscale Discussions: None
Applicable Weather Watches: None
Storm Reports for July 6th

Dann.

2011 Storm Chase 11 - June 29th - Winds In The Redlands, Lightning Bust

I stopped in at work on my day off to look a little deeper into the weather since I didn't have internet at home.  At potent, early summer storm system was heading into the west with the upper level low centered over the Great Basin.  In combination with the already-blossoming monsoon moisture, thunderstorms were erupting over much of the area.  There was enough support to give us a Mesoscale Discussion (#1442), which was the first that I could recall being in on the Western Slope all year. 

Somehow, I ended up in a news vehicle with our weekend sports guy, Pierre Noujaim, headed for the Redlands as an ornery thunderstorm collapsed off of the Monument.  To make a long story short, it was a little windy, but that was about it.  We took a little video of the winds and brought it back to work.

Map (1st chase):

Later that night, more storms came through.  This would prove to be frustrating as a strong storm was putting down a lot of great cloud-to-ground lightning in the Fruita area.  In an attempt to get in better position (what's new?), I basically missed the show.  While I did get to drive through a vigorous core, that was the extent of the fun for me.

By the time I was in a dry location, the lightning had evaporated.  I had spent a considerable amount of time driving around in the desert north of Fruita... but alas, nothing.  The following image was about all I would get to capture. 

Dissipating Shower Over Grand Junction

Map (2nd chase)

STATS
Mileage: 66
2011YTD Mileage: 1487
States: Colorado
SPC Risk: Categorical
Max Hail: None
Tornadoes: None
Other Phenomena:  Wind, lightning
Storm Reports for June 29th

Dann.