On Kiowa County's plains, the weather is the road hazard to plan around

Driving in Kiowa County is usually easy until the sky decides otherwise. Out on the open plains, the main road hazard is not grade or switchbacks — it is weather.

In the warm months, the Eastern Plains see strong thunderstorms that can bring large hail, sudden high wind, heavy rain, and at times tornadoes. There is little to slow a storm down out here, so conditions can change fast and you can often see a storm coming from a long way off. In winter, wind and blowing snow can turn an open highway into a ground blizzard, where the snow on the ground is the problem more than the snow falling. Visibility can drop to almost nothing on a road that looked clear minutes before.

What this means in practice: long, straight highways tempt steady speed, but the safe move is to check the forecast before a trip and be willing to pull off or wait out a cell. There are few services between towns.

Two good habits: check the National Weather Service forecast for the day, and check current road conditions and closures on Colorado’s COtrip before you head out.