Met an old guy at a lookout in Vermont who changed how I see clouds

I was at the Mount Mansfield summit last October, just snapping pics of some altocumulus, when this older guy with binoculars walks up and points at a thin streak way up high. He said 'That's a contrail that's been spreading for 45 minutes, not a real cloud, but watch it turn into cirrus by nightfall.' It stuck with me because he was so patient, just watching the sky do its thing. Anyone else ever had a random stranger teach them something about clouds?

2 comments

2 Comments

knight.oscar1mo ago

You mentioned that contrail turning into cirrus by nightfall, and that's a solid point, but I gotta say it's not exactly right. Contrails can spread into cirrus-like clouds but they usually take a few hours, not just till sunset, and it depends on the wind and humidity up there. Still, that old guy had a good eye for the sky, what else did he point out while you were talking?

the_evan1mo ago

Yeah I can barely tell a cirrus from a cumulus half the time, so I'm just nodding along hoping nobody asks me to point out a lenticular cloud. Old guy sounds like he knew his stuff way better than I do.

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