Buried Facets on Tamarack Peak

I toured around the Tamarack Peak and Mount Houghton area today. Below treeline, new snow totals were around 10 inches, which fell on top of up to 20 inches of heavily faceted snow to the ground. Travelling below treeline, I encountered many areas where the snowpack would whoomph as I stepped into an untouched spot. Directly adjacent to Galena Falls, I noticed cracking in a relatively soft storm slab, approximately 6 inches deep, between switchbacks.

In more exposed areas, especially at treeline, the existing snowpack seemed to be denser and hold the weight of the new snow without collapsing.