Power Out - Wind Storm

Joan and I arrived at the same time as the storm - about 6:00pm on Friday.  The wind was just starting to howl, the sky went black, and the power went out before I could get the barn door open.  I had to go in, find a ladder in the dark, release the door from the opener, and push it up manually.  We got in before the worst of the storm arrived.

It has been over 100 degrees lately.  We haven't had rain in weeks.  I was happy to have a storm but...

it blew down the fence at the orchard...

it only delivered about 1/8" of rain...

it knocked the power out and we had to cook dinner on the grill (we had been planning to reheat some stuff in the microwave)...

The storm passed quickly so I went out to check the cameras.  

The power stayed off all night but at least it had cooled off and was comfortable for sleeping.

I never really got out of my gym clothes.

When I got up at 6:15am Saturday, the power was still off.  Another wind storm ripped thru but dropped no rain.

I hooked up our portable generator and had enough power to brew coffee (whew).  I was hoping to get the fridge/freezers running but apparently it wasn't enough power.

I was amazed that the fruit was all still intact in the orchard.  These trees were leaning over sideways in the storm.

Since there was no power for a/c, hot water, or the fridges, we decided to consolidate & clean out the freezers and head home to Mason before it got too hot (going to be 100 again).

We packed as much as we could in coolers and consolidated all the rest in the chest freezer.  It was still frozen solid and I put 4 bags of ice in it too.  I think it will be good for a couple days and hopefully the power will be on before then.

We packed up and left by 8:30 - it was already getting sticky and the power was still off.  On the way out, we found our neighbor's trampoline in the treeline.  It must have been picked up by the wind, blown thru their yard and over our fence, across the field and into the trees.

Here's a few of the shots from the cameras.  They  are looking good. The food plots are all scorched but they seem to be doing fine.

Well, I didn't get anything done.  Couldn't water the garden (need power for well water).  Still haven't put the deer barrier up on the sunflowers (but they're barely growing due to no rain).  Maybe next week... And I have to get ready for a prairie dog hunt in South Dakota - haven't even fired the 223 yet.  The elk mount is supposed to be shipping right now.