Black n white on Brown

To fire lookout on Mt. Brown to look for wind slabs and survey McDonald Creek peaks for recent natural avalanche cycle(s).

• Snow surface cohesionless, low-density snow from recent storms with little evidence of near-surface slabs. No shooting cracks or collapses.
• Snow still in trees except in valley floor, indicating winds were not strong enough to transport snow during arctic intrusion.
• Crowns  from natural avalanches on most steep slopes in the bowl east of the lookout. Similar slides on Mt. Edwards, Stanton peak, but shallow crowns hard to ID from a distance.
• Look to have been at least two cycles during the past week - soft slabs during the storm, (east, south, and west aspects), wind slabs during arctic intrusion (west slopes).
• One slide may have failed on deeper layers (soutwest aspect, 6800 ft).
• One slide notably more recent than others (southwest aspect, 6500 ft).
• Given the dearth of slabs and signs of instability, we felt comforatble skiing short, consequential pitches 35-40 degrees.

Ski in the white. Don't hit the black. Doesn't get simpler than that.