The Snowy Winter Continues!

2017-02-13 21:14:32.000 – Caleb Meute, Weather Observer/Meteorologist

Well things are beginning to wind down up here after a rather eventful 24 hours. As of our last precipitation can collection, snow totals from this winter storm are just shy of 2 feet! We will likely exceed 2 feet following our next collection after midnight thanks to a band of snow that is being rather stubborn over the Whites. For me personally, this is around the most snow that I have seen fall in a 24-hour period since I first began observing the weather as a toddler (I grew up in Pennsylvania, sue me). I remember that period in my life well and there were just never any big snowstorms to get me out of going to pre-school…

This was an exciting snowstorm for my fellow Observers and I up here especially due to the winds remaining on the lighter side throughout the storm (per Mount Washington Standards). While we are always hoping to see the winds ramp up and gust as far over 100 mph as possible, it is always nice to see the snow falling (almost) vertically up here. The winds did get strong for a period today, but not quite as high as we were anticipating due to the low-pressure center tracking a bit further east than expected.

February averages 40.1 inches of snowfall and we have now surpassed that number only halfway through the month. With the latest collections, our total snowfall this month is up to 44.8 inches! This has been a great winter up here so far, especially if you are as fond for snow as Weather Observer Adam Gill is! Our snow depth is now at 30 inches, which is very rare for us to report because of the winds that usually scour the summit cone clean sending all of our snow to our lucky neighbors. Snowdrifts are beginning to form around the summit that nearly reach the roofs of the buildings! On my way to the last can collection I trekked through drifts that were up to my waist. It truly is a winter wonderland up here and when the fog clears tomorrow it should be a breathtaking sight! While tomorrow looks to be a beautiful day, clouds will stream in late ahead of another storm looking to drop several more inches over the region Wednesday and Thursday. While it would be nice to experience the snowiest February on record here on the summit (173 inches – 1969), I am thinking it will take a bit too much. That February in 1969 had a storm drop 49 inches of snow in a 24-hour period! Where were those snowstorms when I was a toddler? Oh well…

Caleb Meute, Weather Observer/Meteorologist