Calmer Days

2010-11-19 23:23:00.000 – Mike Carmon,  Staff Meteorologist

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Well, hello. It’s been a while since I’ve talked to y’all! Let’s say…24 hours?

My comments today won’t be as lengthy or thrilling as yesterday’s, because the weather has calmed down and cooled off quite a bit. At this moment, visibility is about 115 miles, with the distant lights of Portland, Portsmouth, St. Johnsbury, North Conway, and Berlin all clearly visible underneath a nearly-full moonlit sky.

The moonlight shimmering off the newly-whitened surfaces on the summit adds a nice effect! The snowcaps of nearby mountain peaks such as Lafayette, Moosilauke, Wildcat, and all of the Northern Presidentials can be seen thanks to the intense moonlight. An impressive lenticular cloud currently hovers over Wildcat like a stack of pancakes (no maple syrup, unfortunately) as winds blow at a feeble 33 mph.

This tranquil landscape will not last for long, however, as a cold front is expected to blast through tomorrow, ramping up wind speeds and producing another day of thick fog and rime ice accretion. Thinking of hiking up to the summit tomorrow? Well, even though weather will be decent in the valley, the higher summits will be experiencing winds sustained around 90 mph with gusts most likely approaching and/or exceeding 100 mph for most of the day. In addition, temperatures will be retreating through the day, bottoming out in the single digit numbers during the late afternoon hours. Be sure to take extreme caution and be fully prepared if a trek above treeline is in your Saturday plans.

Sunday looks much more temperate, with winds forecasted to be in the 20-30 mph range with sunnier skies and temperatures in the mid 10s. Either way, be sure to inform yourself with the latest weather forecasts and never be afraid to turn back if conditions become overwhelming. Remember, as always, it only gets worse as you go up!

And as an aside, I’d like to say thanks to all of you forum followers for your compliments regarding my comments yesterday. It is much appreciated!

Mike Carmon,  Staff Meteorologist