Storm March 30 2005
With several tornados reported in Iowa, and funnel clouds reported in the
Madison Wisconsin area, two storms, north and south of each other, were about to pass to the west of Waupun, traveling
northeast. I grabbed my camera, and headed west on hwy AW, a mile west of Waupun. I turned north on a side street,
and pulled over.
3:16pm I almost immediatly started to get rained on, as the shelf cloud from
the first (northern) storm approached. I snapped a picture to the south, and a picture to the north, and headed back east.
After stopping at my house in Waupun to pick up my lightning trigger, I
continued east on hwy 49, through Horicon Marsh NWR, and turned south on hwy Z. A mile south of 49, I pulled over with Dave
Levorson, a storm chaser from Wausau, Wisconsin.
3:42pm This wall cloud quickly formed under the second (southern) storm,
about a mile north of Beaver Dam, cycling back and forth from a wall cloud (inflow dominant), to a shelf cloud (outflow
dominant).
3:43 I attatched my Lightning Trigger to my camera, and kept it pointed at
the storm, so most of the pictures were automatically taken, triggered by at least a small flash of lightning, somewhere
inside, or just outside, of the picture, usually in the clouds, not hitting the ground.
3:51
3:55
3:56
3:59 My brother, Doug, took the above picture from less than a mile from the
storm (3 miles north of Beaver Dam, on hwy 151) at the same time...
...I took this one. The storm is now about 7 miles from my position.
4:00
4:02
By 4:13, the shelf cloud is barely fitting in the picture... I'm assuming
right above Horicon Marsh, approaching hwy 49.
At 4:14, I took two pictures, and merged them together on my computer.
At this time I decide to head home, thinking there are no more photo
opertunities once the shelf cloud is directly above me. After going a half mile north, toward hwy 49, I decide that I like
the angle of the shelf cloud passing over. There is also frequent lightning on the other side of it. With the Lightning
Trigger attatched, I point my camera in the right direction, and hope lightning strikes one more time...
...And it does 4:16
4:17 One last shot
Back to the LIGHTNING and STORM PAGE
Back to the PHOTO GALLERY
Back to Jeff's HOME PAGE