Sugary Surface to Near Surface Snow Near Tamarack

Short dawn patrol tour about half a mile from the small parking area near Tamarack Lake. Dug a test pit on an open 10ish degree slope below treeline (GPS coordinates are where test was taken). The top 10 cm or so of snow was sugary and quite dry. A continuation of cold, clear nights has possibly helped this layer grow over past couple days. This layer may be of concern for weak layer formation related to future storms. There was an icy crust present at 15 cm. ECT was non-reactive. We continued our tour up a small, well-protected ridge line where we saw some small cornices forming due to a west/southwesterly wind. The snow surface here was crusty and had the potential for small wind slab formation. This was of little concern given the terrain we were traveling in, but is likely a more significant issue in more exposed and higher elevation ridges and bowls. Some open areas below treeline appeared to be wind-affected and felt "crusty" on the descent.