I found a reactive buried weak layer of surface hoar and small faceted grains about 2' under the powdery snow surface.

I went back to Hattie's yesterday (1/25/17) and noticed that much of the lower south side (northeast facing) of the bowl had naturally cracked and collapsed, likely on Monday or Monday night. The spider web cracks spread across the slope where is had failed. The only reason it didn't avalanche was the slope angle (about 32 degrees).

We ski tested a few different areas of the bowl and did not produce any avalanches or observe any red flags other than the existence of the persistent weak layer made up of surface hoar and small faceted crystals.