Last Updated on July 16, 2024 8:35 am
LINVILLE, N.C. – April 2024 saw some high winds on Grandfather Mountain, according to data recorded at the park’s official weather reporting stations.
The average high temperature for April 2024 was 52.73 degrees Fahrenheit, with an average low of 39.96 degrees and a mean of 46.35 degrees.
The warmest temperature recorded last month was 69.1 degrees on April 15, more than 10 degrees shy of the mountain’s record April high of 80 degrees, observed on April 7, 2010.
Generally, April continues to bring winter weather to Grandfather Mountain before more spring-like conditions arrive. April 6 saw the coldest temperature recorded last month with 19 degrees. The lowest temperature ever observed on Grandfather Mountain in the month of April (not counting wind chill) was 5 degrees on April 7, 1982.
The weather station on the Mile High Swinging Bridge noted nine days in April with a wind gust higher than 60 mph. On April 13, the weather station at the top recorded a wind gust of 95.2 mph. The month’s highest recorded sustained wind speed clocked in at 56.9 mph on April 12. This day also saw a gust of 93.7 mph. The highest gust ever recorded on Grandfather Mountain was 124 mph, observed Feb. 25, 2019.
The weather station near the Swinging Bridge reported 6.55 inches of precipitation in April 2024. Precipitation at the top of the mountain includes rain and the liquid equivalent of any frozen precipitation (when applicable). Due to wind, snow depth is not recorded at the top.
Observations recorded near the park’s Wilson Center for Nature Discovery totaled 6.28 inches of precipitation and also noted 1 inch of snowfall for the month. Precipitation is also measured at the latter location, as high winds can make it difficult to record accurate observations at the top.
The mountain’s rainiest April was recorded in 2018, when 12.72 inches were observed near the bridge. The driest April on record was observed in 1975, when 0.72 inches were measured at the top.
There were 19 days of at least trace amounts of recorded liquid precipitation (rain and the liquid equivalent of frozen precipitation, when applicable) for April 2024. The day last month with the highest amount of this precipitation observed was April 12, when 2.15 inches were recorded at the top. The day with the highest amount of precipitation observed on record for April was April 21, 1992, when the weather station noted 4.65 inches.
Weather Reporting
The Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation records and reports data in two different ways:
- The park maintains an automated weather station at the top of the Mile High Swinging Bridge. The N.C. State Climate Office assists the foundation in calibrating the machines and ensuring overall accuracy of data.
- Grandfather Mountain has been an active member of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Cooperative Observer Program since 1955 by reporting weather data from locations near the Mile High Swinging Bridge and the Nature Museum (now the Wilson Center for Nature Discovery).
For more information on weather at Grandfather Mountain, visit www.grandfather.com/weather.
The nonprofit Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation strives to inspire conservation of the natural world through education, exploration and example. For more information, visit www.grandfather.com.
April 2024 at Grandfather Mountain_Photo by Monty Combs_Courtesy of Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation: April 2024 saw some high winds on Grandfather Mountain, according to data recorded at the park’s official weather reporting stations. The weather station on the Mile High Swinging Bridge noted nine days in April with a wind gust higher than 60 mph. On April 13, the weather station at the top recorded a wind gust of 95.2 mph. The month’s highest recorded sustained wind speed clocked in at 56.9 mph on April 12. This day also saw a gust of 93.7 mph. (Photo Courtesy of Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation / Monty Combs)
