09.05.2024: Terrell, TX - Dallas - Decatur - Weatherford - Granbury - Valley Mills - Taylor - Austin, TX (370 miles)
Rating:
An early thunderstorm develops at about 10am on the other side of the city. Sounds close.
IS close, if the city isn't the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex! It takes us over an hour to
get there. While approaching Decatur, the early storm reveals itself to the west of us: At an Indian Restaurant along highway 387, roughly 3.5 miles southeast of Alvord, we find a spot to enjoy the approaching severeness:  Darkness crawls up:  Then the gates are unleashed with wind gusts, thunder strokes, rain and hail:  Between our position and the town of Alvord, we pick up half dollar to golf ball sized hail:   Not long after that icy experience, we spot another developing storm cell west of Weatherford, which can easily be reached in time from our current position. At a little lake in Cartwright park, we listen to the ominous roar of distant thunder and learn more about the weather from a friendly local fisherman: The storm merges with a southern branch and is now headed right for Granbury! We follow that signal and postion ourselves as bad as possible into the storm track under a gas station roof right in the middle of town. Now that is the sound of weather holidays: But today's chase is far from over! The next goodie approaches the Waco area, and we await it a bit further west in a town called Valley Mills. Some sort of last supper melody can be heard from the local church, before another swath of lightning, thunder and hail is delivered upon us:    We really start to like the vibe of today and track down another severe storm near Georgetown, heading for Taylor. It looks so good in the evening light:  Once settled comfy in Taylor, we are more than ready to take our final and biggest dose of weather madness today:  Ingredients: Severe wind gusts, torrential rain and, of course, hail up to the size of golf balls:   |