Not-quite-dawn-patrol to Butler Trees. Overall feeling is there wasn't enough new snow or wind to overload any weaker layers.

I was finding the rain crusts from 1/24 at lower elevations with loose facets underneath, but the stout crust seems to have effectively bridged weak layers. My biggest concern at low elevations would be loose snow sluffs.

I have largely been traveling at lower and mid-elevation slopes the past few weeks and overall I have not been finding overly weak snow from our two January faceting events. Over the past 4 days I have been getting mostly CTN and ECTN scores. Where I have been getting a fracture, shear quality has been Q2/RP or Q3. Facets from the two January events are very-small grained (.5 mm) and appear to be turning to rounds. I think the absence of a temperature gradient early last week helped heal these weak layers at low and mid-elevations, especially in the cottonwoods where there has generally been a thicker snowpack.

Scores today:

• ECTN (down 25 cms new snow/old snow interface.)
• CT 23 Q3 (down 65 cms failing in early January facets.)

I haven't traveled enough above about 10,000' to get a sense of things at upper elevations.

Dug a pit at 8800' on E/NE aspect (photo included) showing recent layers in the top 75 cms (30") of the snowpack.

Overall was finding a generally moderate danger with the greatest risk being sluffing in the new snow.

With snow and wind in the forecast, am expecting conditions to change.