Observor Comments

[Knapper]

Marty def. looks like the KING of that mountain, he's so beautiful.

Brian wrote today that he left Marty outside and came back out later to check on him. He doesn't wander off? I'd be afraid of foxes coming after him.

Just wondering...

The cat sticks around the summit since he knows where he gets fed at. He will wander down a bit but returns every time. As far as the foxes go, he has confronted them twice that I have seen and the foxes run away barking at him. The foxes up here are normally scavengers or hunters of rodents or smaller game. And since there aren't a lot of big black animals on the summit cone, I think they (the foxes) are more fearful of the unknown creature following them around.

[KathyC]

Thank you Ryan for taking the time to answer, Marty really is a special cat.

And also, all of you did great on the Cantore Stories, it was a pleasure to watch.

[Charlie]

Stacey the radar you had on your comment the other day do you have a link to that site
thanks

[Bill O]

Stacey the radar you had on your comment the other day do you have a link to that site
thanks

Not sure of the exact site they are using, but I believe it's from a pay service. Weathertap.com is my best guess.

For a one-time fee you can buy this radar program: http://www.grlevelx.com/grlevel3/

I believe they have a 30 day free trial (no obligation, no credit card needed to try, nothing to cancel). This is what all the storm chasers use and I highly recommend it if you are interested in high resolution radar data.

The only downside is you don't get the multi-radar mosaics that many free sites and weathertap provide.

[h2oeco]

Hi Charlie,

As Bill guessed, yes, the image that Stacey posted is from Weathertap - http://www.weathertap.com - it is a very capable system, and I like it a lot. I use it because I live near, and spend a lot of time on the water - bay and ocean - and we get all kinds of thunderstorms, squalls, etc. in the summer. One nice feature is that using latitude and longitude, you can mark your location on the map/radar image, which comes in handy when you want to know how weather is moving in relation to you.

Ed

[Charlie]

thanks Bill and Ed

[Brad]

From today's comments it sounds like the deal where if you ride the Cog or drive up you can get a tour of the Observatory is not in effect any more. Is that true?

[Breeze]

Brad, IME this was instituted last season, so it isn't entirely new.

Auto Road clients ( drive-yourself) receive an informational flyer in their packets.

With limited space, limited manpower, and sometimes CROWDS of people on the summit at any one time, I can see that some limit on the special privilege of receiving a guided OBS tour would be a necessity. Outreach is a wonderful, important portion of the MWO mission statement, but unlimited FREE guided tours to any and all comers from 8 AM to 5 PM or later would seriously impact other necessary elements of the MWO's mission.


From my perspective, bottomside with the AR, when AR clients ask about touring the OBS/weather station, I SHOW them the information in their packet and advise them to ask at the MWO Museum and Gift Shop.

Cog Riders and Auto Road travelers now receive free admission to the Museum. That was a positive change made at the beginning of last season. Another change made last summer was a longer stay at the top for Cog Riders ( an hour instead of 20-25 minutes), as well as increased flexibility to defer/delay downbound passage for an even longer stay at the summit on a space available basis.

Changing times keep us all on our toes. I do strongly believe that < stewardship > is one concept we all have in common.


Breeze

[Knapper]

From today's comments it sounds like the deal where if you ride the Cog or drive up you can get a tour of the Observatory is not in effect any more. Is that true?

This was never the case in my time here. I think you are mixing up two seperate things. As "Breeze" mentioned, in effect last year, auto road and cog riders get free admission to the summit museum during their time up here. The museum is located in the basement of the building.

The tour of the observatory that Brian is mentioning consists of our living quarters, our office, and the top of the tower (the highest legal point you can reach in the NE). This tour has always been free to members and that hasn't changed. What has changed is tours for non-members. In my time here, non-members were charged $5 per person for the first few summers then we changed it to $20 per household + an introductory membership. But this year, like Brian mentioned in his comment, to get a tour, groups (camps, schools, churches, etc) have to prearrange a tour with the valley staff or people/families have to be a member of the observatory. There is no longer a seperate non-member price for this tour; it's members only.

[Brad]

I will readily admit I am confused. I was under the impression both the Cog and the Auto Road travelers could get a tour of the Observatory at the summit. It may have been they only had free access to the museum. The Auto Road web clearly states their self-drive folks can get into the museum free. However, the Cog web site says their riders get in both the museum and the "Observatory Center". I have read that as being the summit operations facility. I might still be confused.

Sorry I brought up the question - but, it is confusing.