Cascades are ROARING!

Very unusual in January, of course, but given the rain and melting snow, not surprising!
If you've never seen the Cascades in action, come by tomorrow!

The Cascades are running!

While there is still plenty of snow on the hill, the Cascades are running!

Melting

It is a melting world out there today! After about 20 inches of snow over the weekend, we're back down to patches with clear spots now. The trails are now a combination of mud and packed ice, so be careful out there.

At nine am, it is 40.5 degrees and steady.
The humidity is 98%; there is no rain falling currently.
The barometer is 29.23 inches of mercury and steady under overcast skies.
The brook is running, as you might imagine; we're measuring 4 4/10 inches down by the Olean Street bridge.The Cascades, however, still remain snow covered; it's all running under the snow.

Yesterday, we got some work done out on the Meadow Ridge Trail, to clarify the trail route as it crosses Silver Spring Road and heads into the relocation. It looks as though there's been plenty of traffic on the trails. Enjoy the warm-ish weather!

A melting day

The snow is softening up and the stream is running: a melting day! And just ahead of more snow?

At nine am, it is 38.5 degrees and rising.
87% humidity (warm enough for water to be in the air!)
The barometer is 29.5 inches of mercury and steady under a blue sky with some clouds.

Overnight, the snow froze up a bit, so the trails are a bit crunchy for now. The Cascades remain snow covered, but they are running underneath.

MELTING!

The flashing snowflake, signifying "freeze," is NOT on our display today. It is 43.3 degrees at 9 am, and it is RISING!
The barometer is falling (at 28.79 presently).
It's 52% humidity and steady.
If this keeps up (as it's supposed to), we'll keep an eye on the Cascades. A few days of this, and we'll be hearing from them!

Thawing?

Just barely edging over freezing here this morning at 8:30: we're showing 32.2 degrees, but RISING.
82% humidity out there, so clearly there's water in the air coming off the snow.
The barometer is at 29.32 and steady. Enjoy it, as the next round of winter weather comes in tonight. The latest forecast I've seen said 2-4 inches this time.

Water, water

Last night's storm + melting on top of the snow and ice led to the exciting discovery this morning that, yes, the driveway to the Lodge washed out last night. Should you come by, you'll see that this leads directly to the lower parking area (as well as what's usually damp around it) being a pond. Unless you have a tall truck, consider the parking area CLOSED.

All the 400 acres of meltwater to the north and west are merrily running down the hill: the Cascades are ROARING today! Currently, the Cascades Brook stands at a foot even; from leaf wash, it looks like it was at least 1 foot 4 inches last night, possibly higher. The secondary stream is open.

Since daylight, we've had snow here, which is accumulating enough to give a bit of a grip on the trails, which otherwise are an uneasy mix of ground and ice-covered. Proceed with care!

At 9 am it is just over freezing: 34 degrees and rising slowly.
The barometer stands at 28.47 and rising.
Fire danger is LOW.

Slushy

It is very soggy out there today. Should you go out, we recommend waterproof footwear. In most cases, there is a thin snowcover that is completely water saturated. In spots, it will suddenly go up to your ankles, however.

At 9 am, it is 40 degrees and rising a bit.
Drizzling rain
The barometer is at 29.82 inches of mercury and steady
The stream is rushing past at 6 inches.
The Cascades are frozen still, but there's plenty of water coming down them, nonetheless.

Lovely!

Just beautiful out there! Get outside, if only for a bit today.

At 9 am, it is 46 degrees and rising
81% humidity and falling
29.85 inches of mercury and steady
The stream stands at 4.2 inches
Fire danger is LOW
You can just catch a glimpse or two of flowing water up on the Cascades today.

We're heading out to Clark University's Water Watch this evening to talk about our stream and other GWLT streams in Worcester.

Warmer

We kept most of the warmth overnight here (at 10 pm, it was still 39 degrees), so it's had no trouble in warming up this morning.

At 10 am, it is 47 degrees and rising
67% humidity and falling (that's water in the air from snow melting and sublimating (you do remember your chem terms, right?))
Barometer stands at 29.74 inches and steady under clear skies

We just saw what looked like a mother and daughter pair go up the trail with a purple saucer sled. Have fun! Trail conditions are bound to change pretty fast today, but do keep in mind that the snow will hang around in the woods a lot longer than in your front yard (well, your front yard. Not ours!)

Open some windows!

* * * * * * *

Also of note:
The USFS Fire Danger Class is NONE

Melting

Not quite as warm as predicted (it never broke 40 here), but we can see the ice on the roof melting, the snow pack subsiding, and the eves dripping. The big news on this is the stream gauge is MELTED!
The Cascades brook stands at 4.2 inches

At 4:30, it is 38.8 degrees and falling
Barometer stands at 30.00 inches and falling (but not very fast)
Humidity is at 52% and steady
There is, no surprise, NO fire danger.

There's been plenty of traffic on the trails today (including one junior ranger on new snowshoes).

Warmer

Yes, that is dripping you see from your roofline. We're hoping that it takes care of that ice dam over the door, at least a bit.
At 9 am, it is 26 degrees and rising (up over 40 at noon!)
77% humidity and steady
29.94 inches of mercury and steady
Fire danger remains LOW

We had an brave soul wading through the snow this afternoon. We do have more than half the parking area open down below, though, we'll warn you: we're going to have some sledders coming down that hill later this afternoon! Look out below!