Yesterday we skied the W face of Hayden peak from about 100' below the summit. We found the entire face filled in to a remarkable degree including choke points I have never seen filled. The snow ranged from solid supportable to waist-deep sugar swimming, with more of the latter than the former on the way up. Aside from the noted pockets of dense slab low down, we experienced no signs of instability. The surface trended toward more supportable rather than less the higher we climbed. Even in areas of obvious special variability (ie visible or slightly covered sharks) we experienced no signs of weakness. Generally the snow confirmed the forecast and was as expected which made yesterday an excellent day for cautious steep skiing.