Storms from the Summit

2012-06-30 17:31:06.000 – Steve Harshman,  Summit Intern

Cumulonimbus Seen from the Deck

The weather on the summit never disappoints, and late on Friday we got quite the treat. With instability in the atmosphere, storms began popping up on the radar in the afternoon. We watched anxiously, hoping some would track towards us; and we lucked out. The clouds started to build in the distance as they slowly made their way towards Washington and we were soon rushing to the observation deck to check out the developing storms. As they passed by we got some amazing views, including the cumulonimbus–complete with anvil–shown above.

For a weather lover, I couldn’t have asked for anything more and this continued into the night. After dinner most of us ran back onto the deck. Looking to the northeast, a huge storm loomed on the horizon. Soon enough the cloud lit up as a bolt of lightning shot across the sky, truly a magnificent sight. Sitting lined up in the few Adirondack chairs on the summit, we watched in awe as each flash illuminated the cloud in front of us; quite the spectacle. After this, I can’t wait to see what else the mountain has in store for me.

Steve Harshman,  Summit Intern