Extreme Chase Tours
Our Northern Plains Tours offer some of the best photo opportunities of the season. From Tornadoes to storm structure to landscape photography. These tours have it all.
GREAT PLAINS TOURS 1 - 3
Our NORTHERN PLAINS TOURS 1- can be some of the most awe-inspiring tours. We are usually chasing in the Northern Plains of Colorado, Wyoming, the Dakota's and even into far west Texas and eastern New Mexico. These tours can provide an almost religious experience as we intercept massive 60k feet tall supercells and tornadoes of all shapes and sizes. The Northern Plains Tours also really showcase the authentic "western" feel of Americana as we traverse areas with of vast farmland, cattle ranches, farmers and cowboys (yes, they wear cowboy hats up there too!) It is a feeling like you are in another world in the Northern Plains - truly God's country.
GREAT PLAINS TOURS 1-3 can offer some of the most photogenic tornadoes and landscape weather shots period. Storm movement is a little slower as upper level winds are not as strong and offer the potential for some crazy good photo opportunities. We can usually be found chasing from the Texas Panhandle and eastern New Mexico, into the mid to upper part of the Great Plains of western/central Kansas, Nebraska, eastern Colorado and Wyoming into the Dakota's. Upslope flow and the Denver Convergence zone are also likely favored areas for tornadoes. Often times we will stage in eastern Colorado or western Nebraska and target any Denver cyclones or upslope flow through the region.
As you can see, the tornado potential really starts to increase and expands during the early May timeframe. Texas through Nebraska and is historically a very active area with a bullseye right in Oklahoma. This is another reason why we base our storm chasing tours out of Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Our Great Plains Tours are perfect for for those who like things a little slower paced. Storm motions are a tad slower and photo opportunities abound just about every day. Wonderful time to be chasing! Tornado potential is increased through parts of Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa back west into Colorado, Wyoming and the Dakota's.
MAYHEM TOUR 3
MAYHEM TOUR 2
Mayhem Tour 4 Tornado starts to pull north and west from the Texas Panhandle, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska into parts of Colorado and the Dakota's and east into the upper Midwest. Breathtaking tornadoes and storm structure can be documented just about anywhere.
MAYHEM Tour 4 falls during the historical "peak" of tornado season. Tornadoes and supercells can be found just about anywhere there is a chance of severe weather if all the weather ingredients are right. During this last week of May, we could be on a storm chasing vacation anywhere through tornado alley, although Oklahoma and Kansas are likely target areas. On May 29 2004 a massive tornado outbreak spawned several tornadoes from Texas to Kansas. We documented 17 tornadoes in two hours in southern Kansas.
MAYHEM TOURS
Large Tornado and Supercell near Denver, CO
Mayhem 3 Tornado potential doesn't change that much geographically speaking from our Mayhem 2 dates. Supercells and tornadoes are likely anywhere in Tornado Alley with some big time tornadoes possible.
NORTHERN PLAINS TOURS 1
Nickerson, KS 4-24-07 tornado 50 yards away!
THE EARLY BIRD TOURS
Our Mayhem Tours #1 through #3 can also find us chasing anywhere across the Southern and Central Plains. We'll start with MAYHEM 1 Tour: Storm Motions are a little faster as we usually get stronger upper level winds and our shear increases. Drylines and mesoscale features like outflow boundaries really start to come into play and can help to produce some MONSTER tornadoes. A prime example is the F-4 tornado on the right documented during May 3 2003 Tornado Outbreak near Girard, KS.
Our Early Bird Tours kick off the storm chasing tour season. The Early Bird Tour 1 starts the third week of April and our Early Bird Tour 2 runs through the last week of April. These early season tours can usually
find us storm chasing anywhere through the Southern and Central Plains. As our weather season changes from the colder "winter time" weather, we transition to our classic "spring weather" pattern. Warm moist air from the Gulf of Mexico makes it's annual northward push. This usually happens from March into April. As cold Canadian air masses continue to try to make their way south we get a heck of a clash of air masses. Mix in a mid latitude cyclone and a cold front or a synoptic lifting mechanism such as a dryline, and we often get severe weather. Many tornado outbreaks have happened in the last two weeks of April and this is a good time to be storm chasing.
During the third week of May (Mayhem 3 Tour), we can literally be chasing from Texas to Nebraska or Colorado and everywhere in between. Weather patters are ever so slowly shifting a tad further north, but we can usually still be found running the tornado chasing tours chasing the Central Plains. generally finds us chasing weather in Oklahoma and Kansas, but possibly as far away as Colorado, depending on the weather set-up. As the spring transition continues, weather patterns can produce some amazing tornadoes. On May 10, 2010, a tornado outbreak produced many tornadoes over Oklahoma, including near Wakita, OK.
Tornado probabilities on May 13 change little as Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas into Nebraska are still "under the gun" with the threat of all modes severe: tornadoes very large hail and high winds likely.
Tornado Tours Description
MAYHEM TOUR 4
Tornado and Supercell north of Wakita, OK 5-10-10
Tornadic Supercell near Goodland, KS.
Our Mayhem Tour 2 generally finds us chasing weather in Oklahoma and Kansas, but possibly as far away as Colorado, depending on the weather set-up. As the spring transition continues, weather patterns can produce some amazing tornadoes. On May 10, 2010, a tornado outbreak produced many tornadoes over Oklahoma, including near Wakita, OK.
Girard, KS Violent Tornado 5-4-03
TORNADO TOURS DESCRIPTION
Tornado in far Northern Kansas.
The Tornado potential for April 15th (as outlined above) is centered of parts of the Southern and Central Plains regions. Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska areas. Although this is an average from 1982 through 2011 and can change, this graphic gives a good idea of where we *might* be chasing at and the tornado potential. As you can see, Oklahoma and Texas are usually a "hot spot" for weather activity during the Early Bird Tours.
The Great Plains severe weather and storm chasing tours season spans several months, and each month offers something a little different from the next. Extreme Chase Tours recognizes this, and we offer a variety of different tornado tours and storm chasing vacation packages which cater to each different part of the overall severe weather and storm chasing season. While the month of May is generally accepted as the peak of the tornado season in tornado alley, our weather experts know that tornadoes can be captured anytime of the year. Particularly in the window between April and July. Extreme Chase Tours employs some of the world's most experienced and successful storm chasers and meteorologists who understand that severe weather season is much more than just May. Because of our experience, we are able to offer our storm chasing vacations spanning the entire period between April and July, in a variety of tornado chasing tours that will fit your needs and wants. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to CONTACT us. Want more information on our tours? Feel free to check out ABOUT OUR TOURS or if you are ready to book your tornado tour, head on over to the TOUR SCHEDULE page and reserve your seat today!
Conway Springs, KS F-3 Wedge Tornado 5/29/04