Cold day on Elephant's Hump

Cold, clear day at Elephant's Hump, with moderate east winds. Sunny slopes remained firm but edgeable, and shady slopes held crust/facet combos in various states due to previous winds. The January rain crust was shiny and slick in several wind exposed places, with facets observed below the crust. In shady areas sheltered from winds, a thin layer of facets and occasional surface hoar was observed above the January rain crust. We dug several shallow snowpits tracking the surface facets, with the expected lack of instability observed. Facets were fist to 4 finger hard, on top of 1 finger hard snow several inches below the surface. I was surprised to find small pockets of surface hoar still standing on the surface, but the majority of it had been knocked over by winds by our late afternoon departure.

Pic 1: Previous winds and warm temperatures created a smooth appearance on the surface, but the rough texture of facets was unmistakable after disturbing the snow.

Pic 2: Isolated pockets of surface hoar still standing even with today's moderate east winds.