View Full Version : #$%^@$%# Weather
photomankc
03-27-2009, 10:51
God I love Missouri. Trip planned for weeks been looking like a little rain the first night Sat and then a nice day Sun and Mon. Then in 3 days it goes from a rainy and little cold to a d!@# blizzard..... on the LAST WEEKEND OF MARCH. I swear, I almost am ready to believe in a higher power since it's pushing it to think that chance just manages to set a major storm over every trip I plan.:cursing:
I was actually thinking it would be a neat test of my sleep system until it started looking like high's in the 40's and 15mph winds were going to be my reward for slogging through the snow and ice on Saturday.
Oh well. I hate trying to plan weekend trips. It's a total waste to drive 5 hours to SE Missouri to set under a tarp in the rain and it only takes a few hours of movement in a storm's time-frame to make it a mostly nice weekend to a mostly nasty one. I'll just have to wait a little longer for my woods-fix. :(
I am headed to the Ozark Trail tomorrow, getting in late afternoon. The forecast looks pretty bad for Saturday night:
Rain likely before 9pm, then snow likely. Some thunder is also possible. Cloudy, with a low around 31. Blustery, with a northwest wind between 15 and 20 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
I may end up sleeping in my car at the trailhead if its bad enough. The good news is it's supposed to clear up on Sunday and be really nice for a coupla days.
Where were you headed? I'm starting here:
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=104991196927643861683.0004659683e372e3437af&ll=37.698627,-90.96626&spn=0.008048,0.011051&z=16
--Kurt
photomankc
03-27-2009, 13:33
I was headed a little SW of there to Rocky Falls on the Current River Section. I wish I could take a couple days off and go Sunday night and Monday night and come home Tuesday but since I was going to do this with a friend and he wasn't wanting to take 2 days of vacation we are just going to have to pick another weekend.
Are you heading towards the Lake or towards Taum Suak from DD? I have spent several days along the Bell Mountain, Taum Sauk, and Peter Cave Hollow areas in there. It's a really pretty place in the fall! If you can get there quick you might even catch Mina Sauk Falls flowing after a good soaking rain.
Cannibal
03-27-2009, 13:38
Blizzard yesterday; couldn't see the street from my kitchen window which is about 15'. Today, bright sunshine! The 14" of snow is down to about 4" of slush.:rolleyes:
animalcontrol
03-27-2009, 14:04
One of my 'coolest' nights out camping was a snowshoe trip.
We almost didn't go because of the bad weather. The second night sleet started about 5 PM and the thunderstorms started at 8 PM.
If you have never seen lightning reflecting off 2' of snowcover...very, very cool and creepy.;)
Snow started at midnight and had 8" by morning...beautiful to emerge to everything covered in powder.
Weather adds to a trip...just think of the cool stories you'll have later!
photomankc
03-27-2009, 14:54
One of my 'coolest' nights out camping was a snowshoe trip.
We almost didn't go because of the bad weather. The second night sleet started about 5 PM and the thunderstorms started at 8 PM.
If you have never seen lightning reflecting off 2' of snowcover...very, very cool and creepy.;)
Snow started at midnight and had 8" by morning...beautiful to emerge to everything covered in powder.
Weather adds to a trip...just think of the cool stories you'll have later!
Sorry man, I'm not that hard ;). I find rain distasteful but tolerable if there is going to be more nice than bad over the weekend. 28 degrees and 25mph gusts is just not something I'll do for a weekend trip. If I were going on a multiday trip that I was already committed too I'd suck it up, but this sucker is looking pretty wild and it's dumping a foot of snow between me and the destination.
My friend is more of a fair-weather camper than I am too!
I am headed to the Ozark Trail tomorrow, getting in late afternoon. The forecast looks pretty bad for Saturday night:
Rain likely before 9pm, then snow likely. Some thunder is also possible. Cloudy, with a low around 31. Blustery, with a northwest wind between 15 and 20 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
I may end up sleeping in my car at the trailhead if its bad enough. The good news is it's supposed to clear up on Sunday and be really nice for a coupla days.
Where were you headed? I'm starting here:
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=104991196927643861683.0004659683e372e3437af&ll=37.698627,-90.96626&spn=0.008048,0.011051&z=16
--Kurt
Looks like the Middle Fork section. I love that section. Did it over New Years. Lots of pretty streams and even a few waterfalls. Have fun!
I was headed a little SW of there to Rocky Falls on the Current River Section. I wish I could take a couple days off and go Sunday night and Monday night and come home Tuesday but since I was going to do this with a friend and he wasn't wanting to take 2 days of vacation we are just going to have to pick another weekend.
Are you heading towards the Lake or towards Taum Suak from DD? I have spent several days along the Bell Mountain, Taum Sauk, and Peter Cave Hollow areas in there. It's a really pretty place in the fall! If you can get there quick you might even catch Mina Sauk Falls flowing after a good soaking rain.
I went to Mina Sauk in November but the falls were dry. Did it again in February after the rains and it was flowing nicely. We hung our hammock on top of Taum Sauk on a crystal clear night and watched the stars.
Are you heading towards the Lake or towards Taum Suak from DD? I have spent several days along the Bell Mountain, Taum Sauk, and Peter Cave Hollow areas in there. It's a really pretty place in the fall! If you can get there quick you might even catch Mina Sauk Falls flowing after a good soaking rain.
All the above. Doing several yo-yo's: up to the lake, then down to Bell, back up to car, down the Middle Fork and back. We'll see how far I get in 7 days on the trail.
My first trip to the OT, so I'm exploring & getting a feel for the trail. Figured this is a good central location to branch out from as there are 3 choices of directions to go.
--Kurt
Weather adds to a trip...just think of the cool stories you'll have later!
I can do cold, witness the -26F night with Shug, I guess we got some good stories out of that one. Snow is no problemo. I can do rain.
What I have trouble with is cold rain. I've walked the edge of hypothermia a few times up near the Canadian border. When you are soaked and its really cold you can't stop to eat or take breaks: immediate chill and stiffening up. By the end of the day exhaustion sets in and you can't generate enough heat.
In this case I'll be setting out late in the day in temps near freezing, wind gusts to 30mph, and rain changing to snow. Not fun conditions to motivate to get out of the car, much less set up the hammock in. Plus I'm trying to use a wood stove on this trip...might have to lug the Jetboil for a day or two until things dry out.
--Kurt
animalcontrol
03-27-2009, 18:53
I can do cold, witness the -26F night with Shug, I guess we got some good stories out of that one. Snow is no problemo. I can do rain.
What I have trouble with is cold rain. I've walked the edge of hypothermia a few times up near the Canadian border. When you are soaked and its really cold you can't stop to eat or take breaks: immediate chill and stiffening up. By the end of the day exhaustion sets in and you can't generate enough heat.
--Kurt
Your cold weather rep is very, very secure!
I agree 100% about raining
I worked outside for 13 yrs and people always wanted to know how I could stand the weather when it was 10*F...
I always told them that 35*F and raining is the WORST weather you can be out in...so hard to say warm...
Looking forward to meetin you in June Kurt...
All the above. Doing several yo-yo's: up to the lake, then down to Bell, back up to car, down the Middle Fork and back. We'll see how far I get in 7 days on the trail.
My first trip to the OT, so I'm exploring & getting a feel for the trail. Figured this is a good central location to branch out from as there are 3 choices of directions to go.
--Kurt
Yeah ... no problem for you Kurt. Have fun, be vigilant, take pix....
Shug
photomankc
03-27-2009, 20:35
All the above. Doing several yo-yo's: up to the lake, then down to Bell, back up to car, down the Middle Fork and back. We'll see how far I get in 7 days on the trail.
My first trip to the OT, so I'm exploring & getting a feel for the trail. Figured this is a good central location to branch out from as there are 3 choices of directions to go.
--Kurt
You'll enjoy that area. Bell offer's some great views and I'm sure they are even better with the foliage not yet in. Looks like you have some good weather from Sunday on to Thursday. I wish I had 7 days to work with!
If you come to the road that leads W-NW into Peter Cave Hollow follow it on down past the ruins of the old homestead till it runs into the hills at the end. There is a quiet little double waterfall (little) there and a nice pool and just a quiet, very nice setting in general. The trail that leads back there is rough and not well traveled but I think the spot is worth the hike.
IM me if you'd like a Google Earth KML with that track on it.
6 feet over
03-27-2009, 20:55
I have a few sub-freezing nights out, but I have ZERO nights out with heavy wind/rain. I have a trip planned this coming Tue/Wed night, and stupid as it sounds, I'm actually hoping it will rain (at least a bit) to put my set up through its paces. I will however have both my truck and a cabin near-by to bail out if my set up fails me.
If I get rain, I also plan to test my fire making skills. I haven't done that in heavy rain yet either.
plowhorse
03-28-2009, 22:36
I agree, rain stinks. I've been in it all day hunting, and I'll take snow any day of the week and twice on sunday. The only thing Ithink is worse than rain, is 35 degrees and FOG:scared:
dcarso41
03-29-2009, 00:17
The worst part of a windy, rainy, cold *** day is having to pack up your stuff in it. Thats got to be the worst when you realise the rain just won't quite for a minute and the sun just ain't gonna shine on you today, and you ARE gonna get soaked to the bone as soon as you take down that Big Rain Fly...
photomankc
03-29-2009, 21:05
The worst part of a windy, rainy, cold *** day is having to pack up your stuff in it. Thats got to be the worst when you realise the rain just won't quite for a minute and the sun just ain't gonna shine on you today, and you ARE gonna get soaked to the bone as soon as you take down that Big Rain Fly...
You said it brother. I had a trip where I was going to sit out the rain for a day and it was supposed to move out overnight. It started on the evening prior and it came in buckets for quite awhile. I sat through the next day content that it would clear tomorrow. Well, it didn't. Next morning it was still pouring. The whole hill was mush, every dip was filled with a puddle, the air itself was soaking everything and if I stayed put that day again then I was going to be short of food before I reached the car. So, packed it all up, put the poncho on and headed on down. That was not a fun morning.
Hitched a ride back to the car and headed home. I require about a 50-50 split for fair weather at least or I'm not really interested.
P.S. - I feel fine with my call. Setting up in my front yard as a test it was miserable. It was raining slush. Seriously, It would land on you in glops of half-frozen horror. Then it would douse you with a bucket of water and howling wind. I was soaked in seconds just trying to get the tarp strung up as fast as possible. Honestly, that made some of the winter-time storms I have been out in durring hunting season look like child's play.
Yeah ... no problem for you Kurt. Have fun, be vigilant, take pix....
Shug
Brief TR here: http://www.hammockforums.net/forum/showthread.php?t=8076
Took lots (130) pics and quite a few vids, but just included a few that showed my HH.
--Kurt
You'll enjoy that area. Bell offer's some great views and I'm sure they are even better with the foliage not yet in. Looks like you have some good weather from Sunday on to Thursday. I wish I had 7 days to work with!
If you come to the road that leads W-NW into Peter Cave Hollow follow it on down past the ruins of the old homestead till it runs into the hills at the end. There is a quiet little double waterfall (little) there and a nice pool and just a quiet, very nice setting in general. The trail that leads back there is rough and not well traveled but I think the spot is worth the hike.
IM me if you'd like a Google Earth KML with that track on it.
Crap, didn't see your post until I got back. Hiked right through Peter Cave Hollow, but didn't see what the big fuss was about. Wish I woulda had your track. I'm gonna go back at some point, can you please send me your track file? Thanks!
--Kurt