Last Updated on November 4, 2021 11:49 am
Data recorded at the official National Weather Service reporting station at Grandfather Mountain’s Mile High Swinging Bridge indicated a rainy October at the Linville, N.C., nature park.
The warmest day recorded last month was 71° Fahrenheit on Oct. 16 — four degrees shy of the mountain’s record October high of 75°, recorded on Oct. 3, 1986.
The lowest temperature observed last month was 28° on Oct. 27. The lowest temperature ever observed on Grandfather Mountain in the month of October was 12° on Oct. 26, 1962.
The average high temperature for October 2021 was 60.4°, with an average low of 45.2°, for a mean of 52.8°.
On Oct. 25 and 26, the station recorded wind gusts of 76.7 mph, while October’s highest recorded sustained wind speed clocked in at 61.3 mph on Oct. 25. Due to technical issues, wind data was unavailable for Oct. 31.
The station reported 9.56 inches of precipitation in October, while observations recorded near the park’s nature museum saw 11.89 inches. 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 October was recorded in 1970, when 15.86 inches were observed near the bridge. The driest October on record was in 1963, when a meager .31 of an inch was measured at the top.
The park counted 19 total days of precipitation for October 2021, six days short of the record high of 25 days in 2019. The rainiest day last month was Oct. 7, when 3.98 inches were recorded at the top. The rainiest day on record for October was Oct. 5, 1995, when the weather station observed 5.12 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 daily temperature, precipitation and weather events from locations near the Mile High Swinging Bridge and the Nature Museum.
For more information on weather at Grandfather Mountain, visit http://bit.ly/gfmweather.
The nonprofit Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation strives to inspire conservation of the natural world by helping guests explore, understand and value the wonders of Grandfather Mountain. For more information, call 800-468-7325, or visit www.grandfather.com to book a trip.
A rainbow appears alongside the Mile High Swinging Bridge, during a welcome break in the clouds in an otherwise rainy October. Photo by Skip Sickler | Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation
