Went up to ski CSR and Crystal Palace, having skied up there a few times over the last few weeks and knowing where all new/new on facets/etc snow was. Did not plan to ski the Draw, given it's still rocky and the weak layer promises to be radioactive.

As I approached the summit I could hear the snow settling. This was just in the last few meters. Until then I'd seen and felt nothing. Taking the hint, I skied down Crystal as planned. On my next lap I stopped well short of the summit, not wanting to annoy the settling snow.

Well, mostly. I was on the ridge of CSR, looking into the Draw. I decided to step just inside the shoulder and...down swept the snow. It started at the top of the Draw, or nearly so, and took all the new snow (didn't seem to step down to dig out the faceted layer) with it. It ended up a foot or more deep. For those who know the Draw, you know all tributaries from the top lead down into a cliffy choke. Had I or someone been in that avalanche, they would have gone right through that, resulting in some unpleasantness.

Everyone knows the snowpack is garbage right now. But I saw it in a way that I don't want to see snow. Trust the advisories: the snowpack is skittish right now and it's about to get radioactive.

I was 200-300 feet below the summit when the avalanche broke. It broke (as near as I can tell) close to the summit. So it broke 200-300 feet above me. Stay well away from open, steep terrain, please.

(no pictures because I was a bit rattled and just wanted to get back on the ridge and get out. CSR skied fine.)