North Dakota hail stones... yep, that's a quarter
I really hadn't planned on hiking to the top of White Butte North Dakota on this trip but with the Rockies buried in deep, unconsolidated snow I decided to head east after leaving a family reunion in Montana. Normally I wouldn't bother writing a report for such a short, easy hike but White Butte is the highest point in North Dakota ...not to mention the getting there story.
After camping the night near Livingston Montana where it became even more obvious that there was more snow than average for this time of year I made the decision to drive to North and South Dakota. Many hours of driving later I stopped at Theodore Roosevelt National Park then continued on I-194 to the town of Belfield North Dakota and contacted Mrs. Dennis who owns the land that White Butte is on. She said there was no place to stay in Amidon, the closest town to White Butte. I discovered later that there actually is a campground... and that's about it.
I decided to stay in the town of Belfield and got a room at the motel and decided to walk to the restaurant about a block and a half away. About halfway there it started to rain then hail, large enough that you knew when it hit you. I got under the roof of a gas station as cars were pulling in off the freeway looking to do the same. The size of the hail increased to near golf ball sized. All I could was watch my car alarm going off but I couldn't hear it over the sound of the hail beating on the roof of the gas station. After about 15 minutes it appeared to stop and cars started pulling out but then it was back with a vengeance and all the cars jockeyed for position under the roof. For another 10-15 minutes even larger hail pounded the desolate town of Belfield and my car. The closest thing I can think of to describe the scene is the beginning of Saving Private Ryan. Finally, a rainbow appeared as if to say "Thank You for visiting North Dakota. Please come again."
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North Dakota hail stones... yep, that's a quarter |
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Once I was convinced the storm had passed I headed back to the motel to see how my car was and change... even under the roof I was completely soaked. Stepping out the door I looked at the cloud that had been the crap out of my car. It now had a dark V dropping out of it. I grabbed my real camera and not long after a tornado dropped to earth. WOW! One more reason not to live in the Mid-west. Forget the restaurant; I was off to the lounge which was packed. The funny part was everyone in the place was from the same family who were having a family reunion in the area and they all had a story. One lady had the back window of her van smashed out... while driving! I had heard the rumors of hail like this but had kind of dismissed them.
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The evil cloud that beat up my Subaru |
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I got an early start the next morning because I wanted out of North Dakota! Arriving in Amidon I headed east on Highway 85 for 2.0 miles then turned south on a well maintained gravel road. At 5.0 miles I turned right on another gravel road. At 1.2 miles I arrived at a mailbox with a padlock on it. I parked and deposited my $10 fee in the mailbox and began the 1 mile hike to the summit.
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On the road to White Butte |
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The route starts on an old farm road that reaches the base of the butte. From there a trail continues to the top. The views from the top are pretty boring… What did I expect from North Dakota?
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This is about as good as it get ...in North Dakota |
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References:
Summitpost.com
