Surprise Pass

Surprise Pass morning of Saturday January 31 was a good objective considering how stable the snowpack was. Busy day out there too, saw a few other groups. We didn't expect good snow but found some soft areas which was nice. Most of the day, the snow was pretty hard or wind affected, which made boot packing up to the pass pretty good. Very warm in the morning sun on the south side of Fairview, almost spring like temperatures. Some recent snowfall on some of the south aspects between surprise pass and Fairview have not bound very well to the existing crust, probably due to surface hoar. This resulted in some fragmented 2" deep slabby pieces chipping off pretty easily in a few select spots that get a lot of sun. Something to keep in mind when picking terrain for sure. Overall a great day for some type 2 fun