Packsaddle Basin/Relay Ridge

We ascended Relay Ridge via Horseshoe. Low coverage still exists below 8,000 feet and can be variable. We found, on average, a 100-130cm (3-4 feet) snowpack, most of which is a uniform slab of snow. The bottom 15cm (6-8 inches) of the snowpack is faceted snow, which was unreactive in two snowpit tests. This snow was also composed of smaller facets that were less developed, which is a positive sign for deeper instabilities over time (and, therefore, larger avalanches). The weak snow near the base of the snowpack is just deep enough that an extended column test (ECT) will not be effective; I also performed a propagation saw test (PST), which yielded stable results. For reference, this snow looks far better than what was near the base of the snowpack last year. I'm sure if you traveled to a rockier or steeper high north, the facets would be more well-developed.

Besides several small mid-pack layers that appear to be either buried crusts or surface hoar (producing unremarkable ECTN results), the concern moving forward will be snow at/near the surface exposed to dry conditions in the coming weeks. You can assume that if the skies are clear, the snow at or near the surface is weakening over time. Fresh snow today capped a thin crust of wind-blown harder snow, beneath which a layer around 10cm (6-8 inches) thick of near-surface facets formed during recent dry spells. With no snowfall on the horizon, fresh snow from today will also facet, and the layer beneath it that's already made the move will continue to worsen. The good news is that this will make for pleasant riding as surfaces may stay "powdery" and forgiving. The bad news is that weak snow will be forming in a widespread pattern, and though it may not be long-lived (i.e., not months), it will be reactive and last well past storm cycles, depending on how much new snow this area receives and how quickly.

Additional bonus: best sidehill I've ever seen of a Skidoo Tundra off-trail.