Good areas for storm chasing

[Hoosier]

I wanted to come up with an outline of the area that is favorable for chasing. I used the following criteria:

1) good visibility (low tree coverage, non-urban settings)

2) relatively flat terrain

3) good road network (this one was most difficult to ascertain and largely based on anecdotal things I've read)

I used these maps to determine forest/tree coverage and population density.

http://0.tqn.com/d/forestry/1/0/J/t/fores_land_proportional.JPG

http://www.theodora.com/maps/new9/usa_population_density.jpg

Areas with greater than 25% forest coverage were disqualified in addition to urbanized zones where feasible.

Now, before I post the map, understand that this is not perfect. There are areas inside the zone that aren't very good and I'm sure there are some good spots outside of the zone. Input welcomed.

[Stebo]

I wanted to come up with an outline of the area that is favorable for chasing. I used the following criteria:

1) good visibility (low tree coverage, non-urban settings)

2) relatively flat terrain

3) good road network (this one was most difficult to ascertain and largely based on anecdotal things I've read)

I used these maps to determine forest/tree coverage and population density.

http://0.tqn.com/d/f...roportional.JPG

http://www.theodora....ion_density.jpg

Areas with greater than 25% forest coverage were disqualified in addition to urbanized zones where feasible.

Now, before I post the map, understand that this is not perfect. There are areas inside the zone that aren't very good and I'm sure there are some good spots outside of the zone. Input welcomed.

Michigan bias

I'd say from 131 East and from 10 south in MI including the thumb is alright, as long as you avoid cities.

[on_wx]

Michigan bias

I'd say from 131 East and from 10 south in MI including the thumb is alright, as long as you avoid cities.

I agree. Anywhere north of the Detroit metro is perfect. The view from the Bluewater Bridge is telling, you can practically see the curve of the Earth.

[Stebo]

I agree. Anywhere north of the Detroit metro is perfect. The view from the Bluewater Bridge is telling, you can practically see the curve of the Earth.

Yeah, the nice thing too is there is a decent amount of W-E N-S state highways through that section too.

[Hoosier]

Michigan bias

I'd say from 131 East and from 10 south in MI including the thumb is alright, as long as you avoid cities.

I was thinking about including parts of Michigan but the population density around there scared me off. I'm sure there's some good areas.

[Megaforce]

I would not include wisconsin at all, to many trees and hills

[Hoosier]

I would not include wisconsin at all, to many trees and hills

I've found some areas near the IL border to be decent. Can't speak for farther north.

[Stebo]

I was thinking about including parts of Michigan but the population density around there scared me off. I'm sure there's some good areas.

If you want to narrow it down, 131 to Lake Huron and US 10 to I-69 and in the centerpart of the state all of the US127 corridor up to US 10

[Hoosier]

Central IL into northwest IN has to be one of the best kept secrets outside of tornado alley.

[baroclinic_instability]

The "good" areas just mean more people chasing as well in most circumstances. I would take a good chase in ND/SD any day over many other areas.

[cmichweather]

I wanted to come up with an outline of the area that is favorable for chasing. I used the following criteria:

1) good visibility (low tree coverage, non-urban settings)

2) relatively flat terrain

3) good road network (this one was most difficult to ascertain and largely based on anecdotal things I've read)

I used these maps to determine forest/tree coverage and population density.

http://0.tqn.com/d/f...roportional.JPG

http://www.theodora....ion_density.jpg

Areas with greater than 25% forest coverage were disqualified in addition to urbanized zones where feasible.

Now, before I post the map, understand that this is not perfect. There are areas inside the zone that aren't very good and I'm sure there are some good spots outside of the zone. Input welcomed.

just from experience i'd cut out much of western nd and sd, in western sd, west of the Missouri river you get into the grasslands with an awful road network and the terrain gets a bit crappy, same with western nd, the badlands as well as road network is awful i'd cut the chase terrain to east of the Missouri river up there basically split the middle of nd and sd for your map and you'll be fine. I've been out west and they had decent viewing areas but the road network is awful and the terrain can cause problems as well.

[Hoosier]

The "good" areas just mean more people chasing as well in most circumstances. I would take a good chase in ND/SD any day over many other areas.

Yeah I've heard it's like a circus in the southern Plains, especially if there's only one or two cells.

[Thundersnow12]

The "good" areas just mean more people chasing as well in most circumstances. I would take a good chase in ND/SD any day over many other areas.

The Bowdle day last year was great terrain, except for all the chasers lol

[Stebo]

The "good" areas just mean more people chasing as well in most circumstances. I would take a good chase in ND/SD any day over many other areas.

Yeah another reason why MI is normally pretty good, not a lot of chasers out there bogging down things.

[Thundersnow12]

Yeah I've heard it's like a circus in the southern Plains, especially if there's only one or two cells.

circus in an understatement lol 5/19 last year in OK was beyond insane. we actually left the better storm to go south hoping new storms would form just because the amount of chasers up north was crazy.

[Hoosier]

just from experience i'd cut out much of western nd and sd, in western sd, west of the Missouri river you get into the grasslands with an awful road network and the terrain gets a bit crappy, same with western nd, the badlands as well as road network is awful i'd cut the chase terrain to east of the Missouri river up there basically split the middle of nd and sd for your map and you'll be fine. I've been out west and they had decent viewing areas but the road network is awful and the terrain can cause problems as well.

Thanks. Like I said the road network was hard. It would've been painstaking to figure that out. Keep the input coming.

[B-Rent]

I wanted to come up with an outline of the area that is favorable for chasing. I used the following criteria:

1) good visibility (low tree coverage, non-urban settings)

2) relatively flat terrain

3) good road network (this one was most difficult to ascertain and largely based on anecdotal things I've read)

I used these maps to determine forest/tree coverage and population density.

http://0.tqn.com/d/f...roportional.JPG

http://www.theodora....ion_density.jpg

Areas with greater than 25% forest coverage were disqualified in addition to urbanized zones where feasible.

Now, before I post the map, understand that this is not perfect. There are areas inside the zone that aren't very good and I'm sure there are some good spots outside of the zone. Input welcomed.

What excluded MO north of 70?

[Hoosier]

What excluded MO north of 70?

I have no personal experience there but I thought I heard the road network isn't good.

[Ed Lizard]

Yeah I've heard it's like a circus in the southern Plains, especially if there's only one or two cells.

Never chased, but I saw the solid traffic jam on some rural road that was holding up the TIV in Oklahoma last Spring on the Discovery Channel series. Again,, just from TV watching, it seems the tornadic storms West of ballpark 100ºW are more photogenic, more LP cells, less rain obscured tornadoes.

[brettjrob]

Again,, just from TV watching, it seems the tornadic storms West of ballpark 100ºW are more photogenic, more LP cells, less rain obscured tornadoes.

You really nailed it. It doesn't take much chasing to figure out why the Plains, and particularly the High Plains, are so much more popular than anywhere else in the country.

It's not just about terrain and road networks. From a visual standpoint, there just seem to be certain regions where storms "look" better than others. Some of the reasons are obvious, and others are harder to put my finger on, but it's definitely a real phenomenon.

With all due respect to the Midwest crowd, this is why I'll never bother driving to IL/IN/MO/AR unless I'm beyond desperate. Yes, you can find areas with manageable terrain. But the quality of the storms themselves, visually, just doesn't seem even to approach what you'll see in, say, the TX Panhandle, save for a handful of exceedingly rare circumstances. I don't fault locals for chasing there, and the light traffic has to be a welcome reprieve from the madness that Plains chasing has become, but I'm not sure the overall experience can quite live up to expectations once you've been out this way for the "real deal."

I might be a bit extreme in my views on this, though. Even within the Plains, I tend to obsessively favor areas farther W when possible because of the pristine terrain and cleaner-looking air. There's a reason I spent 6 hours yesterday driving down to see that W TX supercell in 40s dew points, then sat home today with a setup 2 hours from home, and didn't regret it.

EDIT: baroclinic_instability is right -- the Dakotas are where it's at. The best of both worlds (storm quality and solitude). Or it was, at least, until the chasing community hit critical mass sometime over the past couple years. Bowdle day was as bad as a high risk in central OK would've been 5 years ago.

[roardog]

You could actually do some good chasing here in the thumb. You can see for miles until the corn in the fields gets too tall and obstructs your view. That doesn't happen until the second half of Summer though. The biggest hinderance on the roads would be farm equipment. You can drive for miles without seeing another car on some days.

[Stebo]

You could actually do some good chasing here in the thumb. You can see for miles until the corn in the fields gets too tall and obstructs your view. That doesn't happen until the second half of Summer though. The biggest hinderance on the roads would be farm equipment. You can drive for miles without seeing another car on some days.

Yeah and surprisingly a good portion of the road network is paved too

[Srain]

The map could be extended a bit further S in TX.

[eyewall]

I chase in NC and you just have to know the spots. It can be done though.

[janetjanet998]

Central IL into northwest IN has to be one of the best kept secrets outside of tornado alley.

Silence!!

[Hoosier]

You could actually do some good chasing here in the thumb. You can see for miles until the corn in the fields gets too tall and obstructs your view. That doesn't happen until the second half of Summer though. The biggest hinderance on the roads would be farm equipment. You can drive for miles without seeing another car on some days.

Yeah, it's not fun when the corn gets to be 7 or 8 feet tall.

[Hoosier]

Silence!!

lol

Brett has a point about storm structures. Plains type structures don't happen very often in this region...

[SEMIweather]

You could actually do some good chasing here in the thumb. You can see for miles until the corn in the fields gets too tall and obstructs your view. That doesn't happen until the second half of Summer though. The biggest hinderance on the roads would be farm equipment. You can drive for miles without seeing another car on some days.

Ya, this is why I'm hoping for a repeat of 2004 when I get back in MI in Mid-May. Chasing south of M-59 in SE Michigan is absolutely atrocious; plus I'm in one of the northernmost suburbs (Lake Orion) so I can drive north and get into the middle of nowhere within 30 minutes/1 gallon of gas.

[stormitecture]

I can't wait to get out this year. I generally stay south of ND, avoid NW Neb., Ozarks, far E. OK, LA, AR, MO.

On the main page of the Chaser Quest portion of my website is a map highlighting my preferred area in general.

I'll probably give more details in an upcoming blog (I'll try to remember to post a link or paraphrase here when I do). There are lots of little things about different chase areas both inside and outside tornado alley.

[Ed Lizard]

Just a guess, when an initial disturbance ejects into the warm sector, in the morning, apparently ruining the afternoon, if a few hours of sun does destabilize enough for a second round, maybe the moisture is reduced enough for better visuals. Just a hunch, for those areas East of about 100ºW that tend to have rain wrapped storms.