Southern/Western Minnesota
A few cities include: Mankato, Rochester and Willmar.
Local tornado season: Peaks between June and mid-July.
Terrain: Rolling plains with lakes, a few hills and forests.
Road network: Good throughout most of the area.
Radar coverage: Fair in southern Minnesota, more gaps north and west.
Southern/western Minnesota is located near the northern fringe of the Midwest’s tornado alley. There are usually a few days each summer that produce tornadoes in the area. Large hail can occur with the most robust supercell thunderstorms. Although damaging winds are sometimes a threat, most linear convective (wind-producing) systems form more commonly farther southeast in the Midwest.
Terrain
Low rolling plains make up most of the terrain of western and southern Minnesota. Many small lakes and ponds also dot the landscape. Minnesota ranks in the top 5 of flattest states in the country. With that said, there are hills in far southwestern Minnesota, as well as a few in far southeastern Minnesota. The Red River Valley (“of the north”) crosses the region, forming a relatively low elevation area with spotty forested patches.
Road network
Road networks are generally favorable for storm chasing in western and southern Minnesota. The U.S. and state highways take a mixture of diagonal and east-west, north-south oriented paths. Even with a few turns here and there, most of these primary roadways are fairly straight. A gridded secondary road network is common between the primary roads. The grid is not 100% complete as a few rivers and lakes cause some breaks, but these are relatively small. While most county roads may be paved, many of the rural secondary roads are dirt.
Interstate-90 runs east-west, just north of the Iowa border, while Interstate-35 connects the Twin Cities with Iowa. Areas east of I-35 in southeastern Minnesota become increasingly forested, approaching the Mississippi River. I-94 is the approximate northern boundary of this chase region, connecting Minneapolis with Fargo, North Dakota.
Radar coverage
The radar network is a bit fragmented across southern and especially west-central Minnesota. KMPX covers most of the area, but coverage is limited in far south-central Minnesota. KARX covers southeastern Minnesota, while KFSD covers southwestern areas.
There is a gap in radar coverage between roughly Willmar and points northwest across west-central Minnesota. KABR to the west covers to roughly the South Dakota/Minnesota border and can be helpful in tracking storms approaching Minnesota from the west. Given that the low-lying Red River Valley offers good visibility, the lack of radar data can be overcome by a carefully watching eye, evaluating storms in the distance.
In summary, while western into southern Minnesota may not be a tornado hot spot, it does offer favorable road networks and terrain when storm chasing setups do arise. Radar coverage can be a bit of a challenge, however, as it is limited across parts of the area.
Notes
Refer to the Upper Midwest chase zone for land near the Mississippi River in southern Minnesota.