A Look at Halloweens Past on Mount Washington
2018-10-21 09:07:32.000 – Tom Padham, Weather Observer/Education Specialist
Halloween on the summit of Mount Washington is one of my favorite times of the year. After a busy summer season with many visitors, the staff gets a short while to take a breather before things get more hectic from Mother Nature and all the challenges that come with winter.
I’ve now worked four Halloweens on the summit, with almost identical weather every year: snow showers, fog, and temperatures in the lower 20s. Taking a look at the longer range models this year could be different, but there’s still plenty of time for things to change and there’s chances for snow within a few days of the 31st.
Two constants through each Halloween has been pumpkin carving and Marty the cat! It’s always a fun pastime to carve pumpkins with my shift up here, and Marty often helps to cheer us on (or just see what the heck we’re doing!).
Out of curiosity I thought I’d take a look through the historical notes for Halloween during the early years of the observatory and see if I could find anything interesting. October 31st, 1941 didn’t disappoint!
“Spectacular Aurora about 830 PM – Writhing streamers passing zenith to 45 degrees down in to W & SW colored in form of a question mark for benefit of superstitions populance. Road still passable – wonderful day”
A great day indeed! Out of further curiosity I thought I’d see how the following day fared:
“Glaze and hard rime – rain freezing on gauges – miserable weather – road still passable but worse for football games downstate”
Whether it’s wild weather or football in the fall somethings never change; even on Mount Washington!
Tom Padham, Weather Observer/Education Specialist
The 2025 Gulf Coast Blizzard: History, Science, and Perspectives from a Floridian Turned New Englander
The 2025 Gulf Coast Blizzard: History, Science, and Perspectives from a Floridian Turned New Englander By Alex Branton As a Florida native and a life-long weather enthusiast, I was always left wondering what it
2024 By The Numbers
2024 By The Numbers By Ryan Knapp Blowing snow highlighted at sunset with some undercast on Feb. 1, 2025. Having just wrapped up the monthly review for January 2025, it appears that
Where Weather Meets Wonder
Where Weather Meets Wonder By Peter Edwards Hello everyone! My name is Peter Edwards, one of the interns for the Mount Washington Observatory this winter and I’m psyched to be here! I’ve had a