4068'

Grateful to team up with the Skeetawk pro Patrol to do some obs around their lease area. Decent skiing on the lower pitches of the Sunnyside of 4068 with variable zipper crusts, sastrugi and firm wind slabs at the upper elevations. 

It was fairly easy to find soft slab instabilities in the upper snowpack. Cracking underfoot occurred in both wind effected and lingering soft slabs as we toured, with shooting cracks and larger failures in steeper, wind loaded test slopes. We did experience some small pockets of wind slab on our descent of 4068 on a ESE, technically windward aspect.

Lower elevations had a variety of rain crusts, snow on crusts and drifted powder. We noticed consistent crusts until about 2,000' at which point more leeward slopes had soft, drifted (and reactive) wind effected snow and true windward/crossloaded slopes were scoured or firm. 

We still have terrible structure. We know. You were hoping the mega-storm would cure our poor structure woes. Sad to report that the bottom of the snowpack was still 55cm of well developed basal facets, now with new hard slabs on top. While our wind slab problem will trend less reactive after today as temperatures aggressively drop, expect these buried hard slabs to linger, as well as a deep persistent slab problem. See Fallon's pit markup image for more information. 

Saw some soft, hollow cornices on the top of 4068' that felt hollow and loose.