Observation: Butler Fork

Headed up Butler Fork today, the snow was damp from rain and sun all the way up to 8200ft on all aspects, once above that it was damp on S facing and had a zipper rime crust on N and E. The only cracking or collapsing experience was at 9200ft on a very sheltered E facing slope. The approach and run out of the slope are fairly low angle but the top 200ft is a bowl where the slope measures 34 degrees. I cut into the bowl from a safe spot and got the large collapse and multiple shooting cracks. There is not much snow at this elevation, or a real consolidated slab in this terrain so it wasn't much of a risk to cut into it. The exit out through the damp snow was a bit painful.

photos: cracks from the collapse but no propagation

I would think the hazard is still considerable on high elevation, steep, wind loaded slopes, probably moderate in all other terrain. The Moderate danger rating is for the terrain covered not the high alpine

Damp on all lower elevation slopes, and all the S facing slopes are gonna have a wicked breakable crust in the am. Rime crust noted above 8700ft in the shady protected terrain, don't think I got high enough to see any real wind damage.