Great Weather Ahead! 2015-06-13 20:53:10.000 - Nathan Flinchbaugh, Summit Intern               The summer season at Mount Washington is now in full swing. The Cog and the Auto Road are open, as well as our Extreme Mount Washington gift shop and museum downstairs. School is letting out and the first bouts of summer heat and humidity have made their appearance in the Northeast. I’ve always considered June to be one of the most enjoyable times of the year. The feeling of summer warmth is apparent, but the mugginess of July and August has yet to dig its heels in permanently.

Reflections From A Pair Of Summit Volunteers 2015-06-09 17:12:23.000 - Ruth Innes & Martha Seymour, Summit Volunteers   People may wonder why one would want to spend a week on the top of the highest mountain in the northeast. Certainly a visit of a few hours makes sense, but why a week? The weather is often cloudy, cold, wet, and windy, with a few days of sunshine and calm. I have had people ask all sorts of questions about what we do as a volunteer with the Mt. Washington Observatory. Questions range from: “Do you get altitude sickness?” to: “Aren’t

New to the Summit and Loving It! 2015-06-08 17:58:17.000 - Elena Weinberg, Summit Intern   I’m a few days into my first shift week on the summit and am thrilled to be here! I feel so lucky to have come up on such a clear morning. The view was breathtaking on the way up!     After a short time in the clouds, the weekend turned out to be beautiful, so I explored some of the trails around the summit, hiking down to Lakes of the Clouds, up to Mt. Monroe, and a short way down the Tuckerman Ravine Trail.

It's Great to be Back! 2015-06-06 21:56:23.000 - Kaitlyn O'Brien, Co-Director of Summit Operations   After taking a shift off for vacation, I found myself itching to get back up to the Rockpile! Aside from a lot less snow, there are some other notable changes that I encountered upon my return. The summit museum is now open daily and the gift shop is fully stocked! The Cog Railway and the Auto Road are both in full operation and we’re seeing lots of visitors up here. If you’re looking for a great way to experience all the summit has to offer,

Researchers Getting Their Feet Wet – Literally! 2015-06-04 17:48:27.000 - Eric Kelsey, Director of Research   My PSU Meteorology graduate student, Matt Cann, and I have embarked on an exciting summer field project to learn more about how topography influences the spatial distribution of precipitation. We are using the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF) as our study location due to the network of 25 precipitation gauges that have been there for over 40 years. Matt’s inspection of this dataset has revealed that during precipitation events of >1.5 cm with a south wind, the precipitation amounts decrease with elevation - opposite

Meet "The Watchers on the Wall" 2015-06-02 18:07:48.000 - Mike Carmon, Co-Director of Summit Operations   Seek the Peak is coming, and this year the two shifts of summit observers are facing off in the first ever fundraising challenge! It's Mike C's shift, "The Watchers on the Wall" vs. Kaitlyn's shift, "Cirrus Contenders". This week, meet "The Watchers on the Wall." Check out our facebook page for the video! If you'd like to donate to our team, we would appreciate your support! Of course, all proceeds from both teams will go to support the non-profit Mount Washington Observatory.   Mike

Stormy End to May, Wintry Start to June! 2015-06-01 17:47:18.000 - Tom Padham, Weather Observer/Meteorologist   The past few days have seen some pretty wild weather on the summit, with heavy rain and thunderstorms giving way to a brief taste of winter to start off the month of June. Saturday evening multiple lines of thunderstorms crossed the summit, with very heavy rain and winds gusting to hurricane force at the height of the storm. Due to the slow nature of the storms, lightning continued to strike the summit and the immediate surrounding area for nearly 4 hours straight, making my

When will all the snow melt from the White Mountains? 2015-05-30 17:17:55.000 - Michael Kyle, Weather Observer/IT Specialist   With the passing of Memorial Day we can say that the summer season has unofficially begun. After the brutally cold and snowy winter we had this year it is nice to see the sea of green leaves surrounding the summit again. It’s even better to see the colorful flowers of the alpine garden starting bloom. The down side to all this (at least for skiers) is that all the snow that has coated Mount Washington and the adjacent White Mountains, since

First Days at the Castle in the Clouds 2015-05-29 17:05:38.000 - Thailynn Munroe, Summit Intern   So far, my time in New Hampshire has been nothing short of incredible and full of surprises. Most people never see moose while they’re visiting, and I’ve spoken to a few locals who’ve said they haven’t seen one in years. Against all odds, I saw two in one day! My luck only increased as I made my way up the mountain, to what I’ve nicknamed the Castle in the Clouds.     Yesterday was my very first day as an intern here at the Observatory,

A Spring Volunteer Week 2015-05-28 05:59:10.000 - Ayla & Bruce, Summit Volunteers   What a great week to be volunteers at the Observatory (but isn’t every week up here great?)! We experienced a true spring week on top of the mountain – one which showed us many extremes including high winds in which we could barely stand, snow, rain, fog, rime ice, clear days with visibility up to 130 miles, and clear nights with an amazing blanket of stars.    We started the week with wind chills of -10 and ended it at temperatures in the 50s! We were treated