Quick report
Today we skied the north buttress of 25 Short, departing the lot at 10:00 and returning at 14:00. Leaving the lot the temperature was 45 degrees, and was also 45 degrees at return. The skiing was exceptionally high quality for what we expected. Above tree-line winds were ripping, blowing snow in every conceivable direction, but below tree-line (our entire ascent and descent) winds were relatively moderate. Above 9,000 feet we found 8-12 inches of light-moderate density snow, which decreased linearly to about 4 inches by 7,000 feet Anything south facing had a slight zipper surface crust, and anything north/northeast facing had an unsupportable, grabby, crust buried beneath the fresh snow. East faces were the gem, offering fresh powder well bonded to a fully supportable crust with generally minimal wind effect. Great skiing was had from the summit until about 8000 feet, where snow abruptly transitioned to sticky, manky, slop. We experienced no visible snowpack instabilities at any point in the day, but also did not ski avalanche terrain. Overall, it was a surprisingly pleasant day to be in the mountains with skis.