Srping Storm 2009 in N/E WY

[forluvofsmoke]

We had the warnings in the weather changes yesterday, with some scattered thunderstorms during the late evening. Our afternoon temps peaked at 71*, and then clouded over. Light rain started after dark. At 5:15 am, I awoke to a clap of thunder and the electrical power going down. Winds were strong and heavy snowfall. 45 minutes later, we had power again. The winds are piling the snow up, and not much has been moving outdoors this morning. We'll probably be in blizzard conditions here for about 36 hours total. Wyoming Road Report website shows that the majority of roads in eastern Wyoming are closed as of noon. No travel advised on roads which are open in the effected areas.

Here's a few pics from my driveway from noon today:







Visibility is near zero. I had a really difficult time to get my camera to focus for shots, due to the blowing snow.

Hope everyone took heed to the warning and spent time to prepare for this, as we did. This is a widespread storm. Best thing to do now is stay home and wait it out.

Good luck to all, and stay safe!

Eric

 

[phreak]

Dang, lightening during a snow storm??? That's nuts! Be safe.

 

[txbbqman]

WOW...good Luck Eric hope y'all ride this one out safely.


BTW, that right there is why I refuse to live anywhere North of Waco, Texas....

 

[irishteabear]

Thanks for the pics, Eric. Stay safe and warm.

 

[DanMcG]

Hey Smoke ....You call that a storm?
J/K I know from talkin to ya the other night that you should have enough beer and food to get ya thru....so good luck and don't send it my way!!!!
See ya in chat!
Dan

 

[forluvofsmoke]

Thanks all! We'll be fine here. Checking with neighbors to make sure they're not having any problems, too. All is well so far. There won't be a lot we could do to help, other than pool our resources. That's always a good place to start, or share living space if their house becomes un-inhabitable due to loss of heat, etc. I have a generator and a several hundred feet of cords, so, we can give light/fridge power to a few if needed. If anyone has a medical emergency, county search & rescue can come in with a 4-track snow machine to give aid/transport. It gets treacherous, but no worries here.

People helping each other is the only way to get through these kinds of things.

These pics are from 2:00 pm:

A look down the street, not much can be seen, except the snow piling up now:



Drifting between driveways, about 4 feet high on this one, it'll be alot worse in another 24 hours:



Here's my outdoor kitchen (incomplete), with my equipment all gathered in close so the winds don't tear everything upart and tip it over:

Bbq Refer and Freezer, not happy at all:



Gonna take alot of fire to clear the patio of snow with the Brinkmann SNP. Just kidding, I may be a bit crazy, but I'm not stupid! I love to smoke meat, but not that much!:



I'll post agian, especially when things die down. Massive drifts should be waiting for the kids to dig tunnels into. They love this stuff. Snow-men/women/kids will abound before the big melt in a few more days!

Take care everyone, and stay warm!

Eric

 

[got14u]

looks cold !!! we didn't get it quit as bad as you guys on the east side of the state. still not a fun drive to work today !!!

 

[tasunkawitko]

reminds me of when i lived in spearfish! 12 FEET of snow in one spring storm back in the mid-90s.

crazy as it may sound, i miss it sometimes....

 

[forluvofsmoke]

It was 10:00 pm. Took these for you, Dawn...thought you'd like it.

Camera worked OK in low/no light conditions. The area I'm standing in here is pretty dark. This is the first low-light shots I've tried with this camera. A little fuzzy, though, some of that is from the snow:

Snow/blowing snow is not showing any signs of subsiding yet. This shot is the same view as earlier today, the drift between the driveways is car-top deep now:





Forecast is for a few breaks in the snow until the weekend, with chances for more until then.

Take care, all!

Eric

 

[irishteabear]

Nice pics, Eric. Do me a favor and stay inside? lol

 

[the iceman]

Sure wish you could send some of that down to Az.

 

[forluvofsmoke]

Snow subsided overnight, though the wind is relentless. I looked across town at the hills to the west and can see blowing snow for as far as I could see, about 3 miles away.

Highways should be getting plowed open today, beginning with the major routes. We'll probably be snow bound for today, unless alot of removal equipment is headed our way.

Storm total snowfall amounts are very difficult to even estimate, of course, due to the drifting. My best guess is a foot, give or take. I know it's not much compared to storms in the N/E parts of the US, but out here on the plains the wind is what really causes the bulk of your trouble.

A new look of yesterdays views, I can see again!







Nothing moving here now, except snowmobiles. We'll be clearing the driveway and walks today, now that it may stay clear for awhile.

Take care everyone!

Eric

 

[forluvofsmoke]

Frontend loader came through about 1:00 pm today, so freedom is near!

Streets were pretty plugged up as you can see:








Stay safe averyone!

Eric

 

[wutang]

I am kinda glad I don't live in Wyoming anymore. I remember storms like that.

 

[irishteabear]

Wow, Eric, you've got a lot of shoveling to do.

 

[txbbqman]

Better fire up that smoker, you gonna be very hungry after all that shoveling

 

[mulepackin]

Lots of good moisture, but damn I get tired of winter. Stay safe down there!

 

[forluvofsmoke]

I have lived here for 8-1/2 years, and I don't remember a spring storm quite this bad before. Took these pics on the way to the store this afternoon. I didn't get the worst of it near my house. We were on the down-wind side of alot of other homes. It made a big difference in the extent of drifted snow.

Very little narration required on this set, but, I'll point out a couple details:


As I started down the street from my house. This is the long way, as my short route is still closed with 4 to 5 feet of snow for 1/2 of the block:








There is a 6 foot fence back there someplace:






Is that a pickup truck?


Oh, here's another:


Highway view of the Mobile Home Park:


The entrance from the highway:






Well, folks, been fun, but now, I'm done! LOL!!!

Gotta figure out what I'm gonna do at work in the morning, when/if I can get there. The road to our shop has 3 to 4 feet of snow for several hundred feet of the roadway. Most rural (county) roads, and many highways are still closed in my area, but udates keep coming in.

Gonna remember this one for a long time.

Enjoy you good weather, and don't take anything for granted...

Have a great day!

Eric

 

[irishteabear]

Thanks for keeping us updated, Eric. Glad you made it through safely.

 

[the dude abides]

Stay safe. I really feel bad for those poor people in Fargo, ND. One of the worse floods in years on top of a freakin blizzard. We've had our share of flooding in Iowa but I can't imagine dealing with that crap in the cold too.