July 31, 2012

We are at the end of our third week up here in the White Mountains. Most of our adventures have been weather related.
At the end of our first week, we retreated to Bear Paw RV Resort in Eagar. It is necessary to recharge batteries, drain holding tanks, refill fresh water, do laundry and restock groceries about every week or so.
When we returned to our beautiful, isolated campsite near the spring and creek that feed Carnero Lake, the shady spots held piles of hail reminiscent of springtime in snow country. (Carnero is Sp. for sheep or mutton)
When we pulled into our camping area, both the site we left and the new one I had selected to get better runoff from our awning, were under six inches of water. Apparently, the previous day's rain storm had been far wetter than any of the previous ones. When we went a little ( 75 yards) farther to another spot, it was obvious that our first place was the low point of the immediate neighborhood. While parked in our new location over the next two weeks, the "pond" reformed several more times. We were amazed at how quickly the porous volcanic soil absorbed the water. It never lasted overnight.
Today, at about 10:30 a. m. it started, slowly at first. Then, lightning began. It was so close, we went inside, hoping that it really is safer in a vehicle of some kind. Several times the thunder sounded simultaneously with the flash. That's close! Through the door I saw one bolt strike the "pond" just 70 yards away. Strangely, it did not strike any of the dozens of trees within that same zone. Most of the hail from that storm was pea sized, but there was a significant amount of grape sized.
Following this storm, we had ground fog for quite a while. Fog is eerie in a half-dark forest!