Spectacular Spring Skies

When I arrived at the parking lot this Tuesday evening I was a little hesitant about getting on the path. On the drive over I could see the west turning dark and the wind picking up. It was kind of exciting so I said the heck with it, and threw on my hooded sweatshirt in case it rained. As I hit the trail the storm was literally on the edge of the park as there was still a bit of clear blue sky above. By the time I got the ball field on the west side the wind was whipping the trees around pretty bad. I then heard what I thought was a close crack of lightning but realized was a tree top snapping in the wind. I started to wonder if this was such a good idea. There were still some other people out on the trail and I hadn't heard any sirens yet so I kept going. The storm rolled through surprisingly quietly with the exception of very strong winds and moderate rain. I did manage to spot a couple of deer on the north side but didn't stop long to watch them. By the time I was coming back around to the south side, the sky was changing every minute or so. I was shocked to see the sun pop out again in the west and it helped to show how tumultuous the sky had become. I was amazed at how fast the sky continued to change as I snapped this next pic only four minutes after the previous one.

As the trail continued to turn I noticed a really bright rainbow in the south. If you look closely you can see a second, more faint one to the right.
When I got to the mouth of Shingle Creek the dark skies had moved to the east and the setting sun was making the greenery appear just a bit more dark and vivid green. Only a few minutes later the winds subsided and the sky again morphed into a "muted gold" tone that cast itself onto the now quiet and still waters. As I headed back to the parking lot the sky set on fire with a spectacular yellow orange and purple sunset.
Sorry about the power lines in this last shot, it's just part of the park. Also I think I broke my record here for the most pictures in any one post.

There were just so many variations in lighting in this one visit! Interestingly enough, I didn't color correct any of these pics before posting, they're all in raw form directly off my camera.