So long for now. 2012-04-23 15:45:55.000 - Brian Fitzgerald,  Summit Intern Island in the sky. Eight weeks working, living and playing on the summit of Mount Washington as a winter intern is an experience that defies replication. In my eight weeks here I have spent time shoveling never-ending snow and drifts, compiling weather reports, teaching visitors about Mount Washington's unique weather, joined the century club, witnessed 129 mile per hour winds, built snow caves in -70 degree wind chills... the list goes on. To experience some of the worst weather conditions in the world just outside of my doorstep on

Earth Day 2012-04-22 17:14:58.000 - Mike Carmon,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist Undercast & Overcast Today is Earth Day!Earth Day originated back in 1970, when a senator from Wisconsin proposed a 'national teach-in on the environment' after bearing witness to an oil spill in Santa Barbara, CA in 1969.On that first Earth Day back on April 22, 1970, an estimated 20 million Americans filled public streets and other venues to demonstrate for a stronger and more sustainable environment. The movement continued to grow from that day forward, until 1990, when it began to grow roots internationally.On April 22, 1990, Earth Day brought out

End of Winter Trip Season 2012-04-21 17:12:03.000 - Rebecca Scholand,  Weather Observer/Education Specialist NULL Well the winter trip season is coming to an end. The last of our trips arrived tonight and will conclude all EduTrips, DayTrips, and Climbing Trips until this summer. The last Climbing Trip arrived just as the rain was starting to fall on the summit. Looking back on the season we saw quite a few trips visiting, 27 to be exact. Each one brought it's own unique group and experience to the Observatory. The EduTrips ranged on topics from photography to mountaineering, and the DayTrips brought

Spring rains are on the way 2012-04-20 17:36:42.000 - Mike Carmon,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist Summer Mode The erstwhile springtime rainfall is well on its way!We left the summit last shift in a Snow Cat, with over a foot of snow on the ground, and widespread drifts in excess of 4-5 feet.But upon our return on Wednesday, as Brian mentioned in his comment yesterday, we made it all the way to the summit in a 4-wheel drive van without chains! Very little snow had survived the 50+ degree temperatures that embraced Mt. Washington last week.As a result, the landscape has once again

More Signs of Spring 2012-04-19 16:33:42.000 - Brian Fitzgerald,  Summit Intern The Cog train with Mount Clay in the background. Here we are in mid April and the signs of spring are abound above treeline. Yesterday (Wednesday) on shift-change day our upcoming shift managed the first drive all the way up the mountain in our unchained 4x4 van. It's incredible that just over a week ago our shift left the summit and more than a foot of snow behind.Today's high temperatures in the lower 40s coupled with light winds and a strong April sun continued a string of pleasant weather

Volunteer Comments 2012-04-19 00:17:52.000 - Ed O'Malley,  Summit Volunteer Another volunteer week on the summit has drawn to a close. As usual, I enjoy my time here, cooked a lot of good food for a lot of good people, and took a lot of pictures. The summit offered us a wide range of weather and experiences this week, ranging from classic winter, to almost summer. As the Russian author Ivan Turgenev wrote (in Fathers and Sons, 1862), "A picture shows me at a glance what it takes dozens of pages of a book to expound," (source: Wikipedia), or to put

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles 2012-04-17 23:37:00.000 - John Bauhs,  Summit Volunteer NULL Sometimes, life at the Obs can seem like the movies. In his 1987 movie 'Planes, Trains and Automobiles', director John Hughes's characters- Del Griffith and Neal Page - push-through various travel methods to eventually gain their goals.The travels to this wonderful week (is it week eleven or is it weektwelve?) on the summit seemed to parralel the script of the great Hughes film. It all began with a pre-dawn SuperShuttle ride from my home in Germantown, MD to BWI, then a flight to Boston Logan, a pick-up by

Warmth Returns 2012-04-16 23:22:37.000 - Brian Clark,  Weather Observer/Education Specialist NULL This winter has been my 6th winter season spent working on the mountain, and in all that time, it never ceases to amaze me how quickly the summit can change 'faces. In other words, how quickly it can go from mid-winter conditions one day to mid-summer the next, or vice versa. This can be especially true during transition seasons. This change of 'faces' has certainly occurred in very dramatic fashion over the last 24 to 36 hours.I wrote a few days ago about how impressive the changes have been

New Challenges 2012-04-15 00:58:29.000 - Rebecca Scholand,  Weather Observer/Education Specialist Footprints in the snow Although today may not be a traditional shift change day, it is shift change day for me, in more ways than one. I am heading off the mountain for a quick set of days off. Starting on Wednesday I will be returning and joining the other shift as a new member. After working with my current shift since I began here on the summit I will miss them, but will have shift change days to look forward to. The reason I am switching shifts is due

Changes 2012-04-14 00:06:23.000 - Brian Clark,  Weather Observer/Education Specialist Drifting around the Tip Top House When I left the mountain on March 17 to start my vacation, we were just heading into a long stretch of extremely unseasonable warmth. Knowing this, and the fact that the outlook for the rest of March was for continued warmth, I figured that by the time I returned on April 11, the mountain would look very different than it did when I left it. As is often the case, Mount Washington had some surprises up her proverbial sleeve.Today was actually the first snowless day