Hail! Hail! The gangs all here!

I drove up to the Bolt Hole in the Adirondacks this morning with the intention of cutting some firewood. All the way through southern NY the sky was bright and sunny with only a few cumulus clouds making everything picturesque. Right up to the last 14 miles.

It was then that the clouds became dark and ominous and the rain began to fall, the lightening began to flash and the thunder rolled. It was pouring when I pulled up to the door and I had to wait for it to let up a moment to hustle inside.

Every 20 minutes or so another thunder boomer would roll over the cabin and the walls would shake to the tune of the thunder. Then at 2 o’clock it started to hail. Pea sized pellets rattled off the metal roof and the truck parked outside for at least ten minutes.


Pea sized hail fell fast and furiously.


The rain also came down in buckets.

By 4 o’clock all was right with the world again and the only clouds in the sky were white, fluffy cumulus.

With any luck, I’ll be able to drop a couple of trees and block them up tomorrow morning. I’ll just have to keep my eyes open for the black bears that have been photographed wandering the same woods I’ll be working in.