Talk to me about lightening storms in the mountains

[hank4elk]

These days I just go inside like Rio when it starts here at home in the SW mtns of NM. I don't go hide in my bed but watch the show from the couch.

Yesterday I saw 2 dead angus just off the hwy and pretty sure they were strike victims. HH ranch.

 

[manitou1]

A few years ago I read a story written by a guy that was hunting the mountains with his buddy. His buddy was struck by lightening and killed right in front of him while he was talking to him on the mountainside! Gives one a whole new respect for that bolt!

 

[7mm-08]

I worked at a summer camp in Co doing trail rides and such right out of high school. They would instruct us to have the kids squat down beside a tree, but not touch the tree. Basically just get in a little ball with only your feet touching the ground. I don’t know if that’s still, or ever was best practice.

 

[Dsnow9]

I was deer hunting in Wyoming over the weekend and had a storm rolling in but looked like it was gonna miss me. Some cool lightning off in the distance so shot a quick video while I hunkered down out of the rain. The lightning got real close and then proceeded to put on a lightning show up close and personal like I have never experienced. One of these about every 30 seconds, raining sideways, hail, and almost caused a flash flood in the drainage I was in. Photo is a freeze frame from the video.

 

[Wrong Burgundy]

Even as scary as it is, and potentially dangerous, it really is a humbling way to experience nature's power. I was down backpacking and climbing in the Beartooths, and after we climbed the big coulior on Whitetail Peak, we started to haul ass down the ridge to get to Sundance so we could start bailing downhill to try and outrun a storm. Dumb humans we are, as that storm was on us pretty fast. We ditched our ice tools, crampons and some hardware in a pile and scooted under a big pile of boulders about 20 yards away. Lightning blasted all around us and it rained like crazy for a while while we waited it out.
The coolest part was watching thin black horns appear over the edge and see about 4 mountain goats churning our way, headed directly towards "their" cave that we were crouched in. Sure enough, we look around and there is white hair stuck to the sides of some boulders and hoof prints in the dirt. They didn't join us...but walked on by. Cool day in the mountains.

 

[andrew11]

Even as scary as it is, and potentially dangerous, it really is a humbling way to experience nature's power. I was down backpacking and climbing in the Beartooths, and after we climbed the big coulior on Whitetail Peak, we started to haul ass down the ridge to get to Sundance so we could start bailing downhill to try and outrun a storm. Dumb humans we are, as that storm was on us pretty fast. We ditched our ice tools, crampons and some hardware in a pile and scooted under a big pile of boulders about 20 yards away. Lightning blasted all around us and it rained like crazy for a while while we waited it out.
The coolest part was watching thin black horns appear over the edge and see about 4 mountain goats churning our way, headed directly towards "their" cave that we were crouched in. Sure enough, we look around and there is white hair stuck to the sides of some boulders and hoof prints in the dirt. They didn't join us...but walked on by. Cool day in the mountains.

Sounds like a very cool experience!

 

[mtnkid85]

Ive bailed off of some of our high plateaus around here a few times. Like everyone else says, you never think its going to be bad until the first boomer hits and rattles the ground. Then its an all out sprint to get low!

Another funny-ish one. My wife and I got married ontop of the Beartooth plateau, above timberline in June. Of course a electrical storm white out blizzard blew thru while we where taking pictures. In several of the photos our hair was standing up like we where holding on to one of those static electricity balls!

 

[KB_]

Ive bailed off of some of our high plateaus around here a few times. Like everyone else says, you never think its going to be bad until the first boomer hits and rattles the ground. Then its an all out sprint to get low!

Another funny-ish one. My wife and I got married ontop of the Beartooth plateau, above timberline in June. Of course a electrical storm white out blizzard blew thru while we where taking pictures. In several of the photos our hair was standing up like we where holding on to one of those static electricity balls!

Oh buddy that was a very close to being a short lived marriage. Who was the braveheart taking the Photos? I feel like they could handle taking a family photo of us with the kids.

 

[Brad]

Here's a good read on the subject. I remember reading this when I was a teen in the mid 1970's when just starting climbing - it got my attention:

AAC Publications - Lightning Hazards to Mountaineers

Lightning Hazards to MountaineersAlvin E. Peterson*Although statistics show that lightning is not one of the major hazards of mountaineering, enoug...

publications.americanalpineclub.org

 

[Phaseolus]

Just for the record, it's "lightning," not "lightening." The one with an 'e' means to reduce weight, as in "Lightening your load."

Very enlightening

 

[Phaseolus]

Try being on the gun tower of an avalauncher with about 20 pounds of explosives when one of those warm spring storms rolls over the ridge and the whole tower starts buzzing. Here’s our sign it’s time to leave! Ski as fast as you can!

One of the avalauncher prototypes was test shot in our pasture using alpo dog food cans wrapped in friction tape Back in the early 60’s. Montgomery M Atwater was quite a man.

 

[Moserkr]

Years back in the high Sierras, I got chased off the mtn top by lightning where I was camping in a great glassing spot. As I dropped a ways into the trees, I looked to my left only to see a big 3x3 muley buck paralleling me down the mtn. So I forgot about the lightning and gave chase with my bow. Unfortunately he was on high alert, and my rain gear may have given me away. But its a natural reaction to drop elevation into the trees for all animals, including us.

Scariest thunderstorm was in fish lake nat forest, UT. Microburst didnt produce visible lightning, but thunder and crazy winds. Learned that aspens dont have great root systems. All around me, literally seconds after shooting an elk, trees started falling. Not just a slow timber falling either, 40’ trees being body slammed to the ground within feet of me in every direction. All I could do was stare up at the tree tops and watch, see if one was coming my way. Held my ground and none came my way thank God. Not sure if I could have dodged one if it did. After that, it was calm and found my arrow, started tracking.

I respect storms, but early season thunderstorms are my favorite. They bring opportunity to me.

 

[David58]

Grew up in Tennessee, loved the afternoon storms in the summer.

But thunder sounds different up here, being up here where it starts.

David
NM