Andesite/Castle Valley obs

We toured in the Castle Valley/Andesite Peak area today to practice skills and take a look at the snowpack after yesterday's storm. We did not see much in the way of instability within the recent storm snow or snowpack in general in the elevations we traveled (7200'-8200'), there were no whumpfs, shooting cracks or other obvious signs of instability. Between 7300' & 7900' we saw widespread 3-4mm surface hoar that formed last night after the snowfall stopped. There was ~6-8" of new storm snow. Near and above treeline, the effects of yesterday's intense winds were everywhere- lots of riming on trees and rocks, scouring on the exposed snow surfaces and wind slab formation. Cornice growth was minimal along the Andesite Ridge, and our brief scoping of the ridge area didn't show any cornice failures or wind slab avalanches. 

Sorry, no photos today!