A Thunderstorm was an inherently powerful event. Children were told that if they wanted to grow taller, they should go outside when the thunder was resounding far away (so that it wasn't too dangerous) and jump up and down.

If someone had stiff joints, arthritis, calcium deposits, and similar problems, they were told to get a willow stick and to go outside and beat the painful area during a thunderstorm, so that the problem would get better. Arapahos alive today attest to the effectiveness of this remedy.

Rainwater, especially from thunderstorms, was considered especially powerful as a medicine.

Tornados, Whirlwinds...and Caterpillars
The word for tornado and whirlwind (neyóoxét) is also the word for 'caterpillar.' Thus the caterpillar is associated with tornados and whirlwinds, much like the turtle is associated with fog and dampness. Both caterpillar and whirlwind are emblems of Whirlwind Woman, a figure in Arapaho creation stories. It is not hard to see how both whirlwinds and caterpillars might be associated with great transformative power, including the ultimate power that was the source of creation itself. Both tornados and caterpillars -- when they turn to butterflies -- symbolize the power to transform, heal, and destroy that exists in nature, and which Arapaho vision-questers sought to obtain.

Vision-Questing Sites
According to Arapahos who visited northern Colorado in 1914, there were a number of specific sites favored for vision quests. These included Old Man Mtn (near Estes Park), Grand Lake, a certain pass in the Medicine Bow Mts, and the bluff at the confluence of the Michigan and Illinois Rivers in North Park near where Walden is now located.

The "Medicine Wheel" in the Bighorn Mts, Wyoming
The famous "Medicine Wheel" in the Bighorn Mts was used by the Arapaho as a fasting and vision-quest site. It was called the "Buffalo Wheel" by them. The ceremony is described in detail in a narrative of Paul Moss called "The Buffalo Wheel" in Hinóno'éínoo3ítoono / Arapaho Historical Traditions.

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