April 2026 was the second warmest April on record on Grandfather Mountain, according to data recorded at the park’s official weather reporting stations.
The average high temperature for April 2026 was 58.1 degrees Fahrenheit, with an average low of 43.39 degrees and a mean of 50.75 degrees. The warmest April on record was 2017 when the average high was 59.1 degrees, the average low was 43.6 degrees, and the mean was 51.35 degrees.
The 70-year averages for April temperatures at Grandfather Mountain include an average high temperature of 54 degrees, an average low temperatures of 37.3 degrees and a mean of 45.7 degrees.
The warmest temperature recorded last month was 71.6 degrees on April 15. This reading set a new daily high temperature record for that day. The previous record was 70 degrees, set in 1972. Grandfather’s record high temperature for April is 80 degrees, observed April 7, 2010.
April 6 saw the coldest temperature recorded last month with 26.2 degrees. The lowest temperature ever observed on Grandfather Mountain in the month of April (not counting wind chill) is 5 degrees on April 7, 1982.
The weather station on the Mile High Swinging Bridge noted four days in April with a wind gust higher than 60 mph. On April 19, the weather station at the top recorded a wind gust of 82.9 mph, while the month’s highest recorded sustained wind speed clocked in at 54.6 mph that same day. The highest gust ever recorded on Grandfather Mountain was 124 mph, observed Feb. 25, 2019.
The weather station near the Swinging Bridge reported 1.82 inches of precipitation in April 2026. 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 1.93 inches of precipitation and also noted a trace amount of snowfall on one day 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 1987, when 10.83 inches were observed near the bridge. The driest April on record was observed in 1975, when .72 inches were measured at the top.
There were 10 days of at least trace amounts of recorded liquid precipitation (rain and the liquid equivalent of frozen precipitation, when applicable) for April 2026. The day last month with the highest amount of this precipitation observed was April 28, when .73 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 1956 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.