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| Two possible chase targets existed today. One was in central MT ahead of an advancing warm front and the other along the stalling boundary in southwest SD. I initially targeted SD citing more of a due westerly flow component aloft, but when I arrived in Kadoka for an update the meager dewpoints weren't sitting well with me. So I made a long haul up to Forsyth, MT where I almost retraced my exact route from June 24 of this year. Upslope storms had fired along the Snowies but they had problems with endurance. Later, one managed to turn right prompting a SVR, but it too died a quick death. While approaching Winnett, I noticed another cell exiting off the Snowies while showcasing a rounded base. At this time much deeper convection was underway about 80 miles to my north (2 hr drive time given the limited road network), but I began liking the southernmost storm more and more. The first meso occlusion produced a decent high based funnel (see third photo) that was followed by a much healthier looking meso and updraft. I pulled over at the HWY 16 intersection near Grass Range to watch as this cell's visual vault passed overhead dropping gigantic, scattered raindrops followed by some 1/2" to 3/4" hailstones. The meso later occluded with little fanfare and the base never recovered, so I drifted north to catch the rotating storms near Malta. After having observed the radar trends of previous cells in this area, nothing stayed organized for too long of a time and this held true for the storms I targeted. These went linear big time northeast of Zortman and since the sun was low it had washed out any contrast making photo attempts futile. I realized the chase was over as it was already getting dark and nothing else nearby stood out on radar. I did however come away with another great sunset...this time just west of Saco. |
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