Clean Up! 2012-12-04 17:09:13.000 - Brian Fitzgerald,  Weather Observer/Education Specialist NULL It's Tuesday here on the summit, our seventh day and last day of our shift before shift change takes place tomorrow. As is customary on Tuesday, today is our big clean-up day and the day for prepping for the other shift to take over the reigns. Typically we have members who come up and volunteer with us for the week and often aid us in welcoming guests, cooking, and you guessed it- cleaning, especially on Tuesday. In order to run a manned-mountain-top weather station that is operating 24/7 we

A Sea of Clouds 2012-12-03 18:43:28.000 - Mike Dorfman,  Summit Intern NULL This morning, I woke up to typical Mount Washington weather. We were completely socked in the fog and winds were gusting above hurricane force. One of my favorite times on the summit is during moments of patchy fog in high winds, which we had later this morning as the fog on the summit began to clear. It's hard to imagine how fast the wind is actually traveling unless you have a reference, which, in this case, is bits of fog flying over the relatively clear mountain. As the

Marty, in the Fur 2012-12-02 23:40:59.000 - Marty,  Summit Cat Catchin' some rays during the short days Things have been a lot quieter up on the summit over the last few weeks.I've had the observers all to myself, and haven't had to share them with any tourists, guests, volunteers, etc. This is important, because I need quite a bit of attention for all of my kitty needs.That's right, you guessed it, friends! It is I, Marty, the one and only, awake and risen for a few fleeting moments to grace you all with the most important purr-spective on the rockpile-MINE!This

Winter Trip Opportunities 2012-12-01 18:29:41.000 - Steve Welsh,  Weather Observer/IT Specialist NULL Starting this month the Observatory has several overnight partner-led climbing trips for those adventurous folks who would like to hike to the summit of Mount Washington in winter conditions. These trips are a great way of meeting like-minded individuals as well as a way to learn winter mountaineering skills from very experienced instructors. Next month the Observatory begins it's Winter Day Trips and overnight Winter EduTrips. Day trips are a perfect way to experience the mountain in winter, see it's amazing weather first hand and to take a

Winter on Mt Washington 2012-11-30 18:45:54.000 - Mike Dorfman,  Summit Intern Sunrise From the Summit Cone Living in New England, I have visited Mt Washington many times. One of my favorite trips up to the rockpile was last spring. Instead of celebrating the end to my undergraduate career, I didn't go out drinking or sleep for a week straight. Instead, an hour after finishing my last final exam, I was in the car on the way to Mt Washington. Meeting up with a friend, I headed up to the Hermit Lake Shelters for the night. Under crystal clear skies and

Distance Learning in Mexico! 2012-11-29 17:26:24.000 - Brian Fitzgerald,  Weather Observer/Education Specialist Brian explaining the Thermograph. Last month we were able to offer our first Distance Learning Program live from the summit of Mount Washington to Alberta, Canada. Today was another first for the Observatory's Education Outreach when the summit and our Weather Discovery Center in North Conway linked up with one of the fifth grade classes at the Instituto de Thomas Jefferson in Queretaro, Mexico, just north of Mexico City. This completely bi-lingual school sits at an elevation of over 5,000 feet- so they were no strangers to elevation,

Back in Action 2012-11-28 23:40:37.000 - Mike Carmon,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist NULL After three weeks away from work, one can certainly gain a whole new perspective.I expected to return from vacation to a summit caked in rime ice and snow, with drifts towering over my head abounding, and a dusted-off Snow Cat.However, much to my surprise, the Auto Road was only slightly coated with the wintry whiteness, and the large drifts were nowhere to be found as we ascended in the truck and 4x4 van (Not Snow Cat, but NO Cat) early this morning.The promise of winter is in the forecast

Thanksgiving on the Rockpile... 2012-11-27 23:03:38.000 - Stephen Lanciani,  Summit Intern NULL For every Thanksgiving since I entered this world, I have spent the day with my family. I knew that one year however, I wouldn't be able to be home for whatever reason. Never did I think this reason would be because I was on top of Mt. Washington...You see, working up here means living here for eight days at a time, holidays included. This was hard for me to grasp at first, but the more I saw how much goes on up here and how dedicated the observers

What a Difference a Day Makes 2012-11-26 22:43:18.000 - Roger Pushor,  Weather Observer/IT Specialist View of the Observation Deck at night. What difference a few days can make - From 9:00 PM November 13th until 9:00 PM November 23rd we only had 8 hours where there was any fog reported and temperatures were in the teens to 30's and very low winds for this time of year with a peak gust of only 53 miles per hour over the period. Just so we didn't start to think this is some kind of Caribbean Island resort, the temperature was turned down

Dear Santa... 2012-11-25 18:41:19.000 - Ryan Knapp,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist Dear Santa-Has it been a year already? It seems like just yesterday that I was writing you our Christmas List for 2011 and yet, here we find ourselves heading towards Christmas 2012 and here I am writing you once again. This will be my sixth letter to you; that's nearly one letter for each year I have been working up here. So, this isn't my first go at this whole letter writing thing to you and I have been checking off each itemized item on my SOP for writing this list:1.