The rumble of thunder interrupted a night of sleep, but hey, that’s OK! This has been one of those summers when rainfall has been at a premium in a lot of areas, including Minot. So yes, we can be thankful for the moisture, over ¾ of an inch, that fell early on Tuesday morning.

More than that, we can be thankful for the summer thunderstorm, not severe this time, that rolled through Minot. I quick look at the clock told me that I had at least 90 more minutes before it was time to put both feet on the floor and prepare myself for another day.

Summer thunderstorms have always been one of my favorite North Dakota events. It starts with that deep rumble of thunder and then if we are lucky those flashes of lightning followed by the sharper “claps” of thunder. Soon we hear intermittent raindrops hitting the window and gutters. There may be an adjustment to the number and location of windows that we leave open. Obviously if the rain is accompanied by wind, the windows on the windy side of the house need to be closed…darn!
Watching the sky during the lightning flashes you can take inventory of the clouds and reasonably assess the storm event. But really, a bit of a storm doesn’t hurt anyone, and unless we receive a deluge of rain, like 2 inches of rain in a short period of time.

As the rainfall intensifies the noise level increases. When you are in a house there is almost a chorus of sound. Windows, rooftops and gutters all contribute to the overall sound of the storm.

Back when I was a kid we used to have a tent for camping. The rain would hit the tent so hard that it created a mist inside the tent. The thunder could be pretty intense, and the flashes of lightning would create a brighter than daylight experience inside the tent. Still, if it was a normal thunderstorm, it made for a fairly pleasant sleeping experience, except if we needed to make a trip to the bathroom, often at least a block away.

But this morning we had the windows adjusted perfectly. There were several instances of more intense rainfall, and the lighting and thunder made this early morning special.

It’s all part of the North Dakota experience. When the thunderstorm passed the air outside had the “it just rained” ambience. There were rain puddles on the driveway and the robins were busy hunting for worms. The 3 plus hours of this thunderstorm were special, and enjoyable.

The North Dakota Tapestry
I often write about the North Dakota tapestry, one that changes almost daily this time of year. A recent business trip would reveal many fields of flax starting to flower in western North Dakota. In one case there was a flowering flax field that covered over 4 miles. It truly did look like a large lake. At the end of their flowering period were many brilliant yellow canola fields. Starting to turn from emerald green to amber gold were barley fields, usually the first of the small grains to be harvested. Above these fields were blue skies and white clouds; well at least they were blue skies and white clouds when smoke from the Canadian wildfires did not take residence.

I never get tired of enjoying the North Dakota landscape. I make it a point to block out time to either take a business or personal trip to experience our state at its’ finest.

Sharing Some Photos

The Medicine Wheel- Crow Flies High Point
As you cross the 4 Bears Bridge, going east, you will see the Medicine Wheel on your left hand. According to Facebook posts “Medicine wheels represent the interconnectedness of all things, the four directions, and the cycles of life, often used in healing and ceremony. There is road just on the east side of the bridge that will take you to the park area on top of Crow Flies High Point.

Elk Take To The River
A friend of mine, Jason Zimmerman, shared a photo of a couple of elk swimming across the Missouri River near Red Mike Golf Course in Williston. It’s not a common site, but I am told that elk are actually fairly good swimmers.

Must See Spots
If you haven’t taken a walk at the Bison Plant Nature Trail, east of Minot on Highway 52, I would suggest you put on your hiking shoes and head out there. A map of the Bison Plant Nature Trail is located on the Minot Park District web site.

Today’s Chuckle
The easiest way to be good at golf is to be bad at arithmetic.