Warmer and Variable on Stevens

Snow on Stevens Peak was still variable today, but at least temps were milder and the wind slowed down. I found mostly firm crusty surface conditions near and below treeline except for some small but reactive wind slabs. These first started showing up just above 8200 feet on open east facing slopes (I dropped the pin at this location). Several of these pockets were entirely surrounded by firm crust and the slabs were the only evidence of recent snow. Although innoucous in this terrain, one could imagine a bigger pocket in steeper terrain being a concern. 

The morning was cloud covered with very flat light, but closer to noon the clouds thinned and a good amount of blue sky appeared. At the lowest below tree line elevations this warming made for some very grabby new snow as it started to melt. 

Photo 1: Easy cracking in small lower elevation windslabs

Photo 2: Test results limited to upper portion of snowpack with CT13s and ECTN 17s just below wind hardened snow. This north facing pit at 8700 feet, only had 114cms of snow. 

Photo 3: Poking around on north facing semi-sheltered slopes off the summit ridge to Stevens, I found some areas with large rounding facets near the surface.