Let 'er Rip!!

246 miles after leaving Sheridan, WY, this morning, we pulled into Rapid City, South Dakota.  We're staying at the Lake Park Campground 5 or 6 miles south of town, on the road to Silver City, Custer City, and Hot Springs.  Most of the southern half of the Black Hills is accessible from this area.

We had great traveling weather all day, with a slight cloud cover and very little wind.  Within 15 minutes of setting up in space 39, however, the sky got dark and the wind kicked up. Space 39 is just one space away from the largest tree in the park…..

And then the thunderstorm opened up!  Now we've all seen lightning and heard thunder and gotten wet in a rainstorm, but I've got to tell you, this was special.  The lightning danced around on all sides, striking multiple times a second.  The thunder didn't have a chance to stop before another peal started and ripped across the sky, sounding like cardboard ripping.  The rain soon turned to hail, about dime sized, and the wind blew the rain and hail in all directions.  We thought we might be in  some sort of tornado, since we read about one in South Dakota a few days ago, but a check of the local weather on TV only warned of high winds, rain, and thunder and lightning.  The whole thing was over in an hour, and we were sooo relieved!

We normally take a quick trip into town the first afternoon in a new place.  Today was a bit different, as we were happy to snuggle in and enjoy the safety of Nessie!  We plan to be in Rapid City for a week, doing the typical tourist things, so stay tuned for our adventures!