SNOW.
As you may have heard (or personally experienced), South Dakota just got snow.
A lot of snow.
And some ice.
And some more snow.
And a whole bunch more ice.
But we'll talk about the snow, some of the heaviest of which was right here in the Hills.
However, this story is about more than the weather.
This story starts three months ago, when the Bossman realized I had never been to our other two camps and the M-Man hadn't been to one of them. Also, we hadn't all met the current directors of said camps (who are both new in the last year and a half). It seemed a road trip was in order.
February wasn't a great fit, and March was too action-packed. So ... April, we decided. Heck, the weather would even be more predictable then.
.... Yeah.
I, being someone who doesn't always think her hairbrained schemes through from beginning to end, made plans with Shorty to make a madcap drive to Sioux Falls and the 'rents this past weekend. And we did -- there on Saturday, back on Sunday. Because bright and early Monday morning, we were leaving camp for the Awesome SMC Staff Road Trip of Awesomeness.
Over the weekend, I heard rumblings about snow but paid them little attention. You see, we've been hit by exactly one of the six or so major snowstorms that have been predicted. And it's April.
Oh, how foolish I am.
Monday morning, we got out without any major difficulty. The grass was starting to get green. There was no snow on the ground. The sky was blue and the birds were singing. It was forty degrees outside. We weren't worried.
We made it to Wesley Acres, the first of our camp stops, without any major difficulty, even managing a couple stops along the way just for fun. Behind us, however, we were hearing stories about weather. The kind of weather that leaves people stranded in roadside motels with questionable clientele and roaches the size of dollar bills.
*Shudder.*
Tuesday, after waking up in frigid North Dakota, we continued on, floating north of the storm without any major difficulty. Our trip to the second camp (Lake Poinsett, just southwest of Watertown) was managed with very little trouble save for the last two miles where the road finally got slippery.
Then yesterday we had to return home.
By this point the weather reports were ... intense. 20+ inches of snow in the Rapid City area since Monday. Roads blocked. The interstate closed from one end of the state to the other. School cancelled from Spearfish to Sioux Falls (which, for those of you not from these parts, is a 400-mile spread).
And we were trying to get home.
Being the four responsible adults we are, we decided to see if we could make it to Pierre. And once we made it there, we decided to continue as I-90 was started to reopen.
Lo and behold, the road kept getting clearer.
Until we got to our own driveway, that is.
Still under two feet of snow.
Of course.
By 6PM last night, after the M-Man hiked in to retrieve the plow and the Bossman did a little creative driving, we were home. None too soon, as it turned out; by this point, there were major ice storms knocking out power on the eastern half of the state.
Really, our timing had never been better.
Today, the boys cleaned up. They managed to rediscover our parking lot, the driveway, the sidewalks, and even the decks (which admittedly may not get a lot of use for a few days). I spent the day reassuring this weekend's guests that yes, they can still get in and out of the camp.
Forget days of the week -- I only believe the months because I'm surrounded by calendars. This isn't the April I expected.
Snowfall as of last night, reported by KEVN:
28.3" - Hot Springs, SD
25.0" - Rapid City Airport
24.0" - Kyle, SD
24.0" - St. Onge, SD
24.0" - Belvidere, SD
23.6" - Silver City, SD
21.0" - Piedmont, SD
20.9" - Downtown RC, SD
20.0" - Deerfield Reservoir
20.0" - Hereford, SD
 |
| From the KEVN Facebook page. |
A lot of snow.
And some ice.
And some more snow.
And a whole bunch more ice.
But we'll talk about the snow, some of the heaviest of which was right here in the Hills.
However, this story is about more than the weather.
This story starts three months ago, when the Bossman realized I had never been to our other two camps and the M-Man hadn't been to one of them. Also, we hadn't all met the current directors of said camps (who are both new in the last year and a half). It seemed a road trip was in order.
February wasn't a great fit, and March was too action-packed. So ... April, we decided. Heck, the weather would even be more predictable then.
.... Yeah.
I, being someone who doesn't always think her hairbrained schemes through from beginning to end, made plans with Shorty to make a madcap drive to Sioux Falls and the 'rents this past weekend. And we did -- there on Saturday, back on Sunday. Because bright and early Monday morning, we were leaving camp for the Awesome SMC Staff Road Trip of Awesomeness.
Over the weekend, I heard rumblings about snow but paid them little attention. You see, we've been hit by exactly one of the six or so major snowstorms that have been predicted. And it's April.
Oh, how foolish I am.
Monday morning, we got out without any major difficulty. The grass was starting to get green. There was no snow on the ground. The sky was blue and the birds were singing. It was forty degrees outside. We weren't worried.
We made it to Wesley Acres, the first of our camp stops, without any major difficulty, even managing a couple stops along the way just for fun. Behind us, however, we were hearing stories about weather. The kind of weather that leaves people stranded in roadside motels with questionable clientele and roaches the size of dollar bills.
*Shudder.*
Tuesday, after waking up in frigid North Dakota, we continued on, floating north of the storm without any major difficulty. Our trip to the second camp (Lake Poinsett, just southwest of Watertown) was managed with very little trouble save for the last two miles where the road finally got slippery.
Then yesterday we had to return home.
By this point the weather reports were ... intense. 20+ inches of snow in the Rapid City area since Monday. Roads blocked. The interstate closed from one end of the state to the other. School cancelled from Spearfish to Sioux Falls (which, for those of you not from these parts, is a 400-mile spread).
And we were trying to get home.
Being the four responsible adults we are, we decided to see if we could make it to Pierre. And once we made it there, we decided to continue as I-90 was started to reopen.
Lo and behold, the road kept getting clearer.
Until we got to our own driveway, that is.
Still under two feet of snow.
 |
| I promise, there's a road under there. |
Of course.
By 6PM last night, after the M-Man hiked in to retrieve the plow and the Bossman did a little creative driving, we were home. None too soon, as it turned out; by this point, there were major ice storms knocking out power on the eastern half of the state.
 |
| Heeeeere he comes to save the daaaay! |
Really, our timing had never been better.
 |
| I almost felt bad about standing by taking pictures... |
 |
| Poor Sophie. |
 |
| Not five minutes later, that all came crashing to the ground. And it was ... kind of terrifying. |
Forget days of the week -- I only believe the months because I'm surrounded by calendars. This isn't the April I expected.
Snowfall as of last night, reported by KEVN:
28.3" - Hot Springs, SD
25.0" - Rapid City Airport
24.0" - Kyle, SD
24.0" - St. Onge, SD
24.0" - Belvidere, SD
23.6" - Silver City, SD
21.0" - Piedmont, SD
20.9" - Downtown RC, SD
20.0" - Deerfield Reservoir
20.0" - Hereford, SD
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