Goodbye Mount Washington! 2006-08-21 09:04:56.000 - Christy Schultz,  Chief Intern This morning It’s unbelievable just how fast time really does fly when you’re having fun! A prime example of that cliché saying is this summer: it seems like just yesterday I was driving up the mountain for the first time with Ken, Ryan, and Neil! Snow was still covering the entire summit, and the auto road was so washed out from the spring melt that nothing smaller than a pickup truck would have made it through the waterbars. Leaving the valley to head up the mountain was like entering a

Another intern says goodbye... 2006-08-20 09:15:56.000 - Dan Huber,  Summit Intern The summer intern exodus has begun. Walter left last Wednesday and Christy and I will leave this Wednesday for greener and calmer pastures. The mountain has left its indubitable mark on all of us and we are richer for it. Since nothing of particular note has occurred since the last comment except for light winds and fog, I will take this opportunity to recall some of my finer memories from the summer. At the forefront are the high winds. You won’t realize how strong they are unless you frequent

Bike race... 2006-08-19 14:01:28.000 - Jim Salge,  Observer Parade of pain... I walked through the Observatory’s double doors into the State Park at 6:30AM this morning, and found myself amidst a madhouse. Friends, families and fans of the hundreds of bicycle racers poised to torture themselves for eight miles up the auto road had already arrived, and the line for coffee was already out the facility. Conditions for the race were far from ideal, but honestly not too bad by Mount Washington standards. The visibility was very poor, but atleast the winds were ‘light’ (20-25mph) and the temperatures were ‘warm’

(Not) Kite flying weather... 2006-08-18 07:32:05.000 - Jim Salge,  Observer Barely kiting from the tower... Dan and Walter spend the night at Lakes two nights ago, and returned early yesterday morning with a kite that they found tangled and crashed among the rocks. Eager to try it out, they attached a new kite string and ran to the observation deck…where it refused to fly. No Wind. Overheard jokingly in the background…”They should try that thing on Mount Washington…I hear they have wind there…” Certainly yesterday wasn’t very Mount Washington like at all, as winds only averaged 11mph for the entire

Sunrise at a decent time... 2006-08-17 06:42:32.000 - Jim Salge,  Observer Clear sunrise... Fog cleared from the summits early this morning, and the revealed skies were perfectly clear. High pressure now moving in should hold into the weekend, and a few great days are forecast on the higher summits. It’s not often you hear that about Mount Washington!With all the great weather forecast, I’m actually a bit more excited about the fact that sunrise is now occurring at a later time…late enough that I’ll be awake and on shift to see it. When it was rising at 3:50AM (EST/Observatory time),

Interns begin to depart 2006-08-16 05:29:34.000 - Ken Rancourt,  Meteorologist Although we are seemingly into mid summmer, or so says the calendar, this is the season when we start to see our summer intern crew returning to classes. We are always sorry to see the interns leave as they add so much to the summit experience.Walter Sessions is the first intern to depart as he heads back to Florida State in Tallahassee to finish his degree program in meteorology. Walter has been dubbed the Chief Prveyor of Adjectives for his witty style, and concise descriptions (although they may be somewhat

Changes on the Horizon 2006-08-16 04:22:59.000 - Tim Markle,  Chief Observer Crepuscular Rays Another shift week has drawn to a close and soon both shifts will be on the summit ready to meet and exchange the news of the past week with one another. From an administrative viewpoint not too much has really changed or happened over the course of the past week, but many changes are on the horizon.First, we say goodbye to Walter. Tomorrow will be the final day of his summer internship. He has worked hard and accomplished a lot with his computer skills. He has helped

Here or There? 2006-08-15 06:00:35.000 - Ken Rancourt,  Meteorologist I'm finally getting some time to write a note and update the comments section before the week is over. Please bear with me on this one.Sometimes events take a while to sink in, and then you can appreciate them (or not). Yesterday I was working on the staffing schedule and I was forced to enter 'Tims Last Day' on September 6th. Tim, of course, is heading 'south' -- to work at the South Pole as their meteorologist. We've both sent staff to the Pole, and have also hired a number of

Signs of fall 2006-08-14 03:38:58.000 - Rick Comeau,  Teacher Extern The Sturgeon Moon Signs of fall arrive early here on the summit; manifesting themselves in subtle, yet obvious ways to the observant eye. In the last two weeks, we have recorded several days where the minimum summit temperatures have hovered around the freezing mark. Along with healthy breezes in the 40-50 mph range, the wind chill has been in the teens: hikers beware! While collecting data at the 3000 foot elevation this past Thursday, my colleague and I were caught in a driving rain. This rain, unlike the rain of

Science Says It Can 2006-08-11 23:54:49.000 - Walter Sessions,  Alpha Intern It In case you missed it, August has begun and apparently that means winter has arrived on the summit. Our temperature last night dropped to 33.5°F. If it had fallen farther, perhaps a last bit of rime ice would have been entertaining before I scamper back to Florida next weekend. But no, it's just cold and windy and I packed down my long underwear weeks ago, which means the rest of the summit crew can't make me sleep outside for once.Now Tim's telling me the temperature's down to 31.7°F