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Weather Summary

Dead calm day with warm temperatures and clear skis. 35degF @ 10200ft @ 1230pm. Not a breath of wind. Although sun felt intense and temperatures quite warm, sun angle not enough to warm sunnier aspects in this area today. Very minimal warming of solar aspects. Lower reaches through the sage and bitterbrush were minimally warmed up  providing just a bit of edge-ability  as we schussed out to 6500ft

Snowpack Observations

Skinned from 6500ft just above the Buttermilk Boulders up to the Easterly facing apron of Basin Mountain. Key words for the day for surface conditions would be “mixed bag” and “variable”. At least most surfaces were supportable and fairly smooth and it was a beautiful day out.  Although it was quite warm and very calm, snow surfaces did not soften up one bit during the day. The only semi warmed surface was a south aspect within a gully feature around 7000ft elevation on a 5ft sidewall. Snowpack is dead, no energy and locked up. Two feet of snow at 10,200feet which is semi faceted, but supportable enough to keep you off the ground, ski pen on turns being about 25cm. No significant results on stability tests within a shallow pit. Alpine north facing couloirs are smooth and filled in and if that is what you’re looking for that’s the ticket. Alpine hardware such as crampons (ski & boot) and ice axe are good to have right now for adventuring.

Warming was not a factor today in de-stabilizing sunny aspects. I had hoped that it would soften up sunny aspects for skiing, but the sun angle is still too oblique and days still short for pseudo-corn. Due south in lower elevations really don’t have snow, so that cancels that out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZoRFTqimS8