From Mountains to More Mountains: This Time with Stronger Winds By Alyssa Bélanger On the observation deck in high winds. Hello there! My name is Alyssa Bélanger and I am a fall intern at the Mount Washington Observatory. I was born and raised in Fort Collins, Colorado and have lived there my whole life, until now. I have visited Quebec north of here, but have never been in the northeast. I’ve been interested in weather ever since I was little and was on the edge of the 2008 Windsor, CO tornado and remember hunkering down in my

From Summit to Sign-Off: My Farewell to the Rockpile By Amy Cotter Enjoying my last Mount Washington sunset (for now) on September 13, 2025. After two incredible years with the Mount Washington Observatory – first as a summit intern, then an educator in the valley, and finally as a Weather Observer on the summit – it’s time to say goodbye. Each chapter brought something different. As an intern, I was wide-eyed, eager, and slightly overwhelmed by the number of new things I got to learn about: summit operations, radio calls, tours, forecasting, research, and much more. I

Trail Report: Seek the Peak Hikes 16 and 17! By Chris Nichols September 22, 2025 – Summit 16 of 17 A chilly morning turned into a spectacular day on Mount Washington.  The thermostat in my car read 39 degrees when I got to the Ammonoosuc Ravine trailhead.  I think that’s the coldest start so far.  But the forecast called for temps to potentially reach 50 and winds in the 20 mph range. To mix things up a little, I decided to do Jewell up and Ammo down.  I saw a few people in the parking lot, but didn’t see

From Southern Gulf Beaches to New England Summits By Mitchell Tsokatos Hi everyone, my name is Mitchell Tsokatos and I am one of the fall interns for the Mount Washington Observatory. Born and raised in Alabama, crazy weather has always been a large part of my life. I’ve experienced dozens of intense squall lines and days where supercells splatter the state that you must anxiously watch to be prepared if one headed towards you. Funnily, I was incredibly scared of weather at a young age. I remember nervously asking my dad while we went on long road trips for

Meet Fall Intern Cassie Farnsworth By Cassie Farnsworth Hi everyone! My name is Cassie Farnsworth, and I’m one of the fall interns here at the Mount Washington Observatory. I grew up in Northeast Ohio, and this is my very first time visiting New England. It already feels like I’ve stepped into another world up here on the summit, and I couldn’t be more excited to share the experience. I graduated from Kent State University in the spring of 2024 with a bachelor’s degree in Aeronautics and a minor in Aviation Weather. Along the way, I also earned my private

Trail Report: Seek the Peak Hikes 11-15 By Chris Nichols August 22, 2025 – Summit 11 of 17 It’s definitely feeling like fall up in the mountains.  Temps at the base where in the upper 40’s when I headed up the Ammonoosuc Ravine trail this morning. I met a few hikers along the way, apparently, I’m too quiet and I scared a couple of them as I came up behind them.  I took my usual snack break at the Gem Pool.  It’s a great spot to spend a few minutes, take in some calories, and listen to the waterfall.

Feeling the Winds of Opportunity at 6,288' Feet By Antonio Ruiz Núñez Howdy! My name is Antonio Ruiz Núñez and I am one of the four interns here at the Mount Washington Observatory for the Fall 2025 season. Taking a walk on another pleasant day here on the summit. I was born and raised down in Houston, Texas. My interest and subsequent lifelong love for the weather started at a young age when Hurricane Rita made landfall in southeast Texas on my 5th birthday on September 24, 2005. I distinctly remember waking up in the middle of

Highlights From My Summer Internship By Max Sasser It’s hard to believe that the summer is over. It went by so quickly, but it felt like I lived a lifetime at Mount Washington. I loved every minute of my summer up there. It truly was a blast. I remember looking out of the window of the van going up the summit my first week. It amazed me at the sheer amount of fog on the summit! Then the snow came. I had never seen that much snow at the same time before! My shift was absolutely amazing. Karl, Amy,

Reminiscing about my Summer on the Summit By Amber Stokes Hello again! It’s hard to believe my time as an intern is coming to an end. It feels like just yesterday I was sitting in the observatory van, heading up to my first shift on the summit. The past three months have been a whirlwind, starting out as one of three interns on my shift, to solo interning by my last week (my fellow intern, Ryan, is now a night observer!). The amazing observers on my shift, Alex, Charlie, previously Alexis, now Ryan, and museum attendant, Corbin, all made

A Summer I'll Never Forget By Madelynn Smith It’s hard to believe that my time here as an intern at Mount Washington Observatory is coming to a close. Before this internship I had never visited New England, and was only familiar with the hot, muggy summers and relatively mild winters that North Carolina typically brings. So it was definitely a change moving up to Mount Washington and getting used to the occasional freezing wind chills in the middle of summer! But it’s been a wonderful 6 weeks living on the summit full of exciting weather, beautiful summit views, and