Last night Larry announced he was going up to the top of the ridge because there was a tornado watch in Douglas County. Of course I wasn’t going to let him have all that fun alone, so I grabbed the camera bag and joined him.
On the way to I-25 he decided it would be a good idea to fill up the gas tank, since it was registering empty. As much as I hated to waste time, we stopped for fuel. Running out of gas while storm chasing or worse being chased by a storm would be a real bummer!
As we pulled into the Conoco in Lone Tree, we saw it.
A long tall skinny funnel cloud was touching the ground just to the SE of us. It was huge. Yes, it was a real tornado!
I fumbled around grasping for my Canon while watching in awe and surprise.
Last time I saw a tornado in Douglas County, I didn’t even know I was watching one. It was a big, black nasty square cloud, not a neat, trim funnel. Today’s tornado was a classic. There was no wondering what it was.
Luckily but at the same time disappointing, the funnel dissipated into thin air. Gone.
I never got time to snap a shot. Darn!
When the gas tank filled up, we took of to Surrey Ridge to hang out and see if we could spot another one. The clouds were swirling and churning, but the real show was over. The temperature had dropped 30 degrees and the elements that create a tornado were gone.
We weren’t the only storm chasers on the road. There were many others out taking in the views. The most interesting and scary were the news helicopters in the air. I would love to have a seat in one of them…what a bird’s eye view.
Maybe in my next life…
Enjoy the storm chaser photos, but keep in mind this really isn’t “normal” for Colorado. We aren’t known as tornado alley!
Visit this link to learn more about Tornado Safety.
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4 Comments
Come down as we have a storm brewing in the Gulf. However I am not interested in seeing it come here. Photos of a nice quiet lake would be nice next week this time.
OMG now you are a tornado chaser! Is it as exciting as it sounds? Come to Lake Erie we have funnel clouds that stay a nice distance away (water spouts). I am worried for Eric, this Gustav storm sounds awful.
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Eric ~ Life on the gulf must be full of stormy weather. I can understand how a nice calm lake is peaceful. I would enjoy that too!
Carole ~ Anything (almost) for a good photo! I missed this one though, really bums me out, so many others were on top of it.
Well dang Kristal! Lesson learned - have the camera ready BEFORE arriving at the site
I’m thinking you don’t get many chances to chase tornadoes (tornados?) in the Denver area.
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