"Safe" Months for MO, AR, LA to Avoid Tornadic Weather?

[Riverbug]

Planning to head down to Galveston from MN for a couple months next January/February. Planning to take November and December to explore the central/southern US on our way down. The plan would be to shoot down from MN through IA. Then start exploring throughout MO, AR, and LA for most of the two months before heading over the TX and Galveston where we'll stay put till we head north again.

I am just not sure when in the year there is less severe weather activity for those states? Is Nov and Dec relatively safe compared to other months?

The other option would be to explore states further West on the way down, but we want to save that for a "Western" trip in the future. I would plan to head back north next March further West compared to the trip down.

Appreciate any insight those who live or frequently travel through those states might be able to provide.

 

[reubenray]

Early Spring and Fall are the most active months

 

[Scott'n'Wendy]

My experience is not extensive...only one trip from just north of you to Phoenix and back..Feb to April.
Heading down early in the year was uneventful. Prior to heading back in late March there were tornadoes that killed over forty people. Weather events were much more prominent when we were leaving to go home. When we left Phoenix we had to stop just east of Tucson because winds were picking up from Las Cruces and eastward. We stayed a couple days till the winds were lower.
So, imo, just be flexible and be prepared to wait out weather events from a distance. I use an app called Windy for when I go out fishing on bigger lakes at home. Found it quite useful when travelling NM, TX, OK, KS.

 

[coglesby]

I can’t help much because I’ve lived in north east Texas and south west Arkansas for 64 years and never been hit by a tornado

 

[trailrydr]

Lived in central, eastern, and southern MO. The weather here can be as difficult to predict as a coin toss. Have witnessed 12" snow in May, tornados from March to November, 45f in July, and 78f on Xmas day. Not to mention.... several 100yr floods in only 10yr spans.

The common saying, "If you don't like the weather, just wait a few minutes," is often attributed to Mark Twain and highlights the rapid and unpredictable nature of weather, especially in certain regions. = was from MO.

If you travel here, enjoy while you can and expect (possible) radical shifts in the weather.

Happy Trails

 

[Riverbug]

Thanks all. Okay, we'll just plan our trip, keep an eye on weather, and hope for the best. Our house has been hit twice by straight line winds in MN over the years so it's not like we don't have bad weather here. In our newest home further north, which is on a slab with no basement, we installed a Family Safe storm shelter to ease my wife's concerns.

Over the past few years as we started traveling south for part of the winter, I've seen so many of those long lines of storms stretching up across several states in the south and it just makes me nervous being so exposed in an RV. With enough advance warning I know a person can move, but you don't always know whether it's going to hit your location and if you move it might just hit there. Anyway, appreciate all the responses.

 

[Grandesigner]

To me, the scary part is the night storms that sweep by...

 

[Scott'n'Wendy]

Thanks all. Okay, we'll just plan our trip, keep an eye on weather, and hope for the best.

You're probably similar to me thinking about the wind. We don't get a lot of high wind events so it's a little more "out of my comfort zone" because I'm unfamiliar with it. Coglesby on the other hand has dealt with it his whole life and probably doesn't think too much about it.

 

[el Rojo]

You picked the safest time for tornados, but the worst time for ice. As coglesby said, Tornados take a small path unlike hurricanes.

 

[Riverbug]

You picked the safest time for tornados, but the worst time for ice. As coglesby said, Tornados take a small path unlike hurricanes.

Good point. I am more comfortable with ice than tornadoes. Although we have seen some pretty nasty ice down there too.

 

[coglesby]

I'd be more worried about straight line winds and hail that occur with thunderstorms because those cover large areas. Tornado coverage area is very small and are spawned out of the thunderstorms. watch weather.com and pull over into a parking lot and let it pass.

 

[trailrydr]

I'd be more worried about straight line winds and hail that occur with thunderstorms because those cover large areas. Tornado coverage area is very small and are spawned out of the thunderstorms. watch weather.com and pull over into a parking lot and let it pass.

Not us..... been there done that in this countries tornado alley - WAY TO UNPREDICTABLE. If camped, lock and leave trailer and head to out and away (if time), and find the nearest shelter to stay.

If on the road, dump trailer and go, or, leave entire rig at a parking lot, and then find some form of shelter to go. Seen our share of tornados, dont need to live thru a "Twister" event and hope to get the tshirt.

Insurance is your friend on recovering financials, and the all mighty dont care if a few more get wiped off the planet.

Then hopefully back to more.....

Happy Trails

 

[el Rojo]

We were in the trailer and got hit by tennis ball size hail. Probably lasted 5 to 10 minutes...seemed like an hour. I'll just say it was loud, REAL LOUD. Brand new roof on the trailer. No damage there but cracked some new skylights. Truck was in a barn.

 

[Dale G]

From now to the end of June is the worst for severe weather with super thunderstorms and tornados as well as straight line winds. But Missouri is known for severe weather no matter the month, the spring is definitely the worst. November can be pretty windy and you can get early snow/ice storms in December. Fall can also have its fair share of storms, but not as severe as Spring. I would say the calmest time as far as weather is concerned would be July through October. November and December would be better than Spring. Missouri's weather can be very unpredictable, I've seen tornados in February, but that is not the norm. I would still say the best weather in Southeast Missouri would be late summer early Fall.

Good luck,
Dale

 

[Teledoc]

Have lived in MO most of my life. I will travel any month, each has it's pros/cons. In MO and AR, the worst storms are typically April - July but can happen anytime. I use weather apps like Weatherbug and RadarOmega to track storms - the latter best. I also check weather forecasts a day in advance along my routes no matter where I go - there can be impressive storms and even in clear weather very strong crosswinds anywhere.
Back to MO/AR, November pretty calm, though possibly could be entering winterize time, certainly in December if that matters. December-March potential ice/snow. Recall the winter in Texas a couple years back with widespread power outages - many RV'ers stranded, driving all over trying to find propane or gas for generators. Each month can have it's unpredictable issues.
Hence good weather apps - with good data I've ducked into covered places to avoid direct hail, left a campsite a day early to avoid an unexpected snow storm, and so on.
Best - Carl

 

[Janiceknight1]

Planning to head down to Galveston from MN for a couple months next January/February. Planning to take November and December to explore the central/southern US on our way down. The plan would be to shoot down from MN through IA. Then start exploring throughout MO, AR, and LA for most of the two months before heading over the TX and Galveston where we'll stay put till we head north again.

I am just not sure when in the year there is less severe weather activity for those states? Is Nov and Dec relatively safe compared to other months?

The other option would be to explore states further West on the way down, but we want to save that for a "Western" trip in the future. I would plan to head back north next March further West compared to the trip down.

Appreciate any insight those who live or frequently travel through those states might be able to provide.

I have used charts like the one attached to help guide my travel plans. There’s really no great time to travel through the middle of the country. If it’s not tornadoes, it’s ice storms and snow or sweltering heat and humidity. I have crossed the southern portion of the US 6 times during the winter and early spring, but have not done so in several years. The weather has been so unpredictable and awful from TX to FL that I’m reluctant to even try. Even going as far south as just north of Padre Island did not keep me from being caught in the big freeze. I’ve sought tornado shelters several times in areas where the chances to experience one are remote. I’ve been lucky that they have just missed me! I’ve always tried to plan my travels following good weather, but it’s become harder and harder to do so. Hope you have good weather luck during your trip.

 

[Riverbug]

Have lived in MO most of my life. I will travel any month, each has it's pros/cons. In MO and AR, the worst storms are typically April - July but can happen anytime. I use weather apps like Weatherbug and RadarOmega to track storms - the latter best. I also check weather forecasts a day in advance along my routes no matter where I go - there can be impressive storms and even in clear weather very strong crosswinds anywhere.
Back to MO/AR, November pretty calm, though possibly could be entering winterize time, certainly in December if that matters. December-March potential ice/snow. Recall the winter in Texas a couple years back with widespread power outages - many RV'ers stranded, driving all over trying to find propane or gas for generators. Each month can have it's unpredictable issues.
Hence good weather apps - with good data I've ducked into covered places to avoid direct hail, left a campsite a day early to avoid an unexpected snow storm, and so on.
Best - Carl

Thanks for that. Question regarding the apps. Is RadarOmega one that shows the warning boxes and heading of severe storms and tornados? I had an app a number of years ago, then lost track of it and have not been able to find one again that shows that detail.

 

[Riverbug]

I have used charts like the one attached to help guide my travel plans. There’s really no great time to travel through the middle of the country. If it’s not tornadoes, it’s ice storms and snow or sweltering heat and humidity. I have crossed the southern portion of the US 6 times during the winter and early spring, but have not done so in several years. The weather has been so unpredictable and awful from TX to FL that I’m reluctant to even try. Even going as far south as just north of Padre Island did not keep me from being caught in the big freeze. I’ve sought tornado shelters several times in areas where the chances to experience one are remote. I’ve been lucky that they have just missed me! I’ve always tried to plan my travels following good weather, but it’s become harder and harder to do so. Hope you have good weather luck during your trip.

Thanks for that map. I went to the website to look around more. I'm actually amazed to see MN has more or as many tornadoes as the states south of us, with a big difference when it comes to TX. I realize most tornadoes in MN are in the southern half but never would have guessed that many annually. Would be interesting to see data on a more recent scale, say the last 10 years, but it's very interesting.

 

[el Rojo]

The other thing with tornados is when they travel in fields/agriculture land, they don't make the news. Maybe that's why you didn't realize southern MN had so many.

 

[DarrellGKing]

Planning to head down to Galveston from MN for a couple months next January/February. Planning to take November and December to explore the central/southern US on our way down. The plan would be to shoot down from MN through IA. Then start exploring throughout MO, AR, and LA for most of the two months before heading over the TX and Galveston where we'll stay put till we head north again.

I am just not sure when in the year there is less severe weather activity for those states? Is Nov and Dec relatively safe compared to other months?

The other option would be to explore states further West on the way down, but we want to save that for a "Western" trip in the future. I would plan to head back north next March further West compared to the trip down.

Appreciate any insight those who live or frequently travel through those states might be able to provide.

We are traveling from SW AZ to Western NY through May. We have tried to anticipate this, but my one caution I keep bumping into is that the weather is freaky lately and so I am being vigilant for outliers. I am not going to Oz just because I expected the weather to obey the rules!!