Quick report
- Cracking
- Observed
Our group climbed and skied in Escape Hatch between 1030-1130. As we ascended the lower path, we noted upside down structure in 3-6" soft slabs which lay on a firm crust. Considering that these slabs were disconnected by brush and old surface, we felt comfortable proceeding. As we crept higher into the terrain, we observed several hand sheers failing on isolation. At this point, slabs were becoming stiffer and more widely connected (though still similar in depth). With this in mind, as well as the obstacle-ridden runout, we pulled the plug 3/4 of the way up. On our descent, we gave care to stay above the snow released by our skis. In the planar upper portion of the slope, this yielded grabby but decent turns. As expected, in the lower portion of the slope, we were able to trigger small soft slabs in convex features. Warm ambient air temperature made skiing out the fire road slow and sticky.