Camping in Hail!

No one would go camping in a hail storm on purpose.  You want to avoid camping in hail if you can. But hail often accompanies thunderstorms, which all to often pop up unexpectedly in mountainous areas that make their own weather.  While hail often accompanies thunderstorms you can get hail without lightning and thunder.  Hail is created in vertical winds within clouds.  Moisture condenses on particles in the air.   If the vertical winds aren't strong it simply falls to earth as rain.  But when their are high winds within a cloud formation, the drops are carried up to higher altitudes and lower temperatures where they freeze.  They then fall back down where they can get coated with more moisture and the cycle continues until they get so heavy the winds can no longer carry them back up.

There is no good way to camp in a hail storm. Hail bombarding your vehicle can break windows and dent roofs and other horizontal surfaces. I got caught in a hailstorm with dime-sized hailstones last summer and now the roof of my RV has texture much like a golf ball. An external windshield cover, if you have one, might reduce the chance of glass damage.  Hail can really wreak havoc with tents and canopies.  Put your awnings and canopies away as soon as you can.  About all you can do to protect your tent is put a tarp over it to absorb some of the impact.  Or take it down and wait out the storm in your vehicle or some other available structure.  Dime size hail can be annoying and inflict minor damage but hail can get larger -- sometimes as big as baseballs!  And when that happens, it is VERY dangerous, even deadly.  Imagine being struck by  a chuck of ice 3" in diameter that has fallen several thousand feet and is likely to have reached terminal velocity (the fastest speed it can fall given size, weight, and atmospheric resistance).   The terminal velocity of hail is roughly proportional to the square root of its diameter.   to A 1cm hailstone will have a terminal velocity around 50 mph.

If you start to experience hail on the highway, try to find shelter under a bridge or overpass until the hail stops. Be sure there is room to get far enough out of traffic lanes so you don't create a hazard for other drivers and risk getting hit. Sometimes you can get some shelter by parking next to a building if you can find an appropriately configured parking lot. Getting under the canopies at fueling stations would protect your rig from the hail, but it isn't ethical to tie up the pumps except while you're actively fueling your rig. A sudden hail storm might be a good excuse to stop and top off your tanks. An abandoned gas station would be perfect for a longer stay, if too many other drivers haven't already beaten you to it!

If you're already set up in camp when it starts to hail there isn't much you can do about your vehicle but you can make sure portable equipment and OHVs are brought in or placed under shelter before they are damaged. Also, make sure all your awnings are properly stored at the signs of an approaching storm. You want to roll up your awnings before they get wet -- and before any gusty winds can damage them up or make rolling them up difficult.

If it hails long enough, it could create make the roads slick.  If the road starts getting covered with hail, treat it like you would snow.  Slow down, give yourself extra room for stopping and turning; leave extra space between you and the vehicle in front of  you; avoid sharp or sudden changes in direction.

Did your mom ever tell you to stay off the phone during a thunderstorm?   There is some validity to that old wives tale.  Lightning striking power or phone poles many miles away can send a potentionally lethal charge down the wires.  If you're boondocking you usually don't have to worry about power line strikes, but you may want to take precautions, like disconnecting from the campground power outlets (or even phone, TV cable, and wired Internet connections), during a thunderstorm when in a campground.  A strike many miles away could cause a surge that could damage the electrical systems in your RV.  You can equip your RV with surge protectors, but they are fairly expensive.  Still, they can save many times their cost and a lot of inconvenience by preventing electrical damage.  An electrical surge can fry wiring and start a fire too.  If you don't have a surge protector you might want to completely disconnect all wiring from the campground during a thunderstorm, just to be safe.

If you're out on the trails (hiking, horseback riding, or OHV riding) when it starts to hail, seek immediate shelter. Get back to camp if you can or look for someplace to get you and your mount (furry or mechanical) under cover. Get into a large culvert or under a bridge (be alert for flash floods!), get into a cave or tunnel or under an overhanging ledge or go into a grove of trees. Trees may not completely block all the hail but they should stop and/or slow down some of it, and that's better than standing out in the open.  Don't stop under a single tall tree.  It may serve as a lightning rod!

Keep your helmet on as long as you are out in the hail. Helmets are required for riding dirt bikes and ATVs in many areas and it is ALWAYS a good idea. Even small hail can be very painful and inflict some injuries.   Some folks have equestrian helmets for horseback riding. They aren't as fashionably appealing as a cowboy hat but they'll do a lot more good if you get knocked off, fall, or are thrown and they can prevent a nasty headache if it starts to hail.  Did you know more people suffer head injuries from equestrian accidents than from motorcycle accidents?  Yet there is no outcry for equestrian helmet laws.

Don't get dinged!