Red Lake Peak

We went to 9,600 feet on Red Lake Peak in search of possible corn, we didn’t find much. We knew before we left the car it was doubtful. The east winds were consistent at 10 - 20 mph with gusts above 40 mph.  At times it was so windy, it felt like it was blowing me uphill and hard to stand.  The winds appeared stronger along the crest and near the summits. The predominant wind direction was from the east; however as the winds hit micro features in the terrain, they were funneled from different directions. It felt as though all aspects in the alpine were being touched by the wind. There was no blowing snow nor banners on the ridges. 

Cold temps from the night before showed a good refreeze. The high temperatures today were forecasted to be 37°F, but the winds kept the surface snow cold enough that it never thawed. There was minimal corn in isolated pockets. Most snow surfaces remained frozen dispite the sun and temps. Both the ski pen and the boot pen were 0 to 3 cm. Skinning was easy on low angles and slick on steeps.  It was gripable... until it wasn't. Ski crampons were helpful. Slide for life is a possible hazard in steep terrain.  The snow surface was inconsistent and textured from multiple melt freeze cycles, average was pencil to knife hard. 

No snow surface instabilities were observed.  Due to the lack of melt, it did not seem like there would be wet loose instabilities in the area we traveled. There was minor surface melt at lower elevations and flat terrain, facing the sun.   Ski conditions were firm with the occasional soft pocket.  We thought there might be pockets of wind sheltered terrain, melting in the sun; it proved harder to find than anticipated. This left me wondering if there was anywhere that was good today.