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2008-04-19 04:25:53.000 – Kyle Paddleford,  Meteorologist

When packing on Tuesday night for my work week I had some decisions to make. Was I to pack flannel or cotton sheets, and should I pack a pair of shorts just in case it gets really warm? Well, I chose the flannel sheets which I am happy about, and I packed the shorts. Obviously I have been using the sheets, but have not put on the shorts yet. I should have last evening when Stacey, Ryan, and I were playing catch on the deck. Today may be the day when I wake up this afternoon, but my legs may be blinding to onlookers as they have a high albedo this time of year. The Carhartt pants I have been wearing are just about right for this weather, but after wearing snow pants every shift since October I have been yearning to wear something other than pants.

As everyone knows we had a pretty impressive winter both on the summit and in the valleys. In fact, the summit has not seen a stretch of nice weather comparable to this since last September. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday had 100 percent possible sunshine minutes, with yesterday being 99 percent. The daily highs inch up each day and so do the overnight lows. Yesterday we were 22 degrees above daily average temperature, and 21 degrees above the day before. I have been able to wear my sneakers everyday so far and have not had to worry about covering every inch of skin in fear of frostbite.

I must say that even though the weather is great and Mother Nature has been giving us a break from the typical Mount Washington weather, it is extremely boring from a meteorological standpoint. The forecasts are the same everyday with maybe an occasional tweak to the wind direction or speed. The forecast discussions and weather phones are starting to sound like broken records. The view is getting spoiled by increasingly hazy skies. There just really is not much going on weather wise. April is usually a highly variable month, but as of now we will have to wait for change and find excitement in other non meteorological ways.

Kyle Paddleford,  Meteorologist