I started form White Pine TH around 10:45. The snow around the parking lot was completely saturated to the ground, and was pretty much the same way until the turnoff to head up to the Birthday Chutes. Along the trail the coverage was good and the snow was dense. Skinning up through the smaller trees from the White Pine trail to the bottom of the Chutes was pretty uneventful. Despite being a little difficult to go up, the down through here was good: mainly loose graupel mixed with light snow, and skied well until the saturation zone located just above the trail. At the bottom of the Chute the winds started to affect the snow. The surface above 9800' was mostly the graupel layer with the top a 1-2" forming a denser layer and the bottom 1-2" remaining preserved, soft, and loose. This presented a an upside down feeling.

As I wandered I wondered when the Considerable snow was gonna show up. I had dug down at around 9,500' and 10,200 and was noticing a strong snowpack so I kept walking uphill. Kinda hard to think I was making my way through the Birthday Chutes on a Considerable day with not much to show for it. Looking up any chute from the bottom on a Considerable day always raises a few hairs, but today felt different. Several red flags were present (winds and blowing snow, weak layer on the surface, a bunch of new heavy snow), but I was finding fairly Low danger. I know there was a crust in the pack halfway down that made me think I should bump up the danger to Moderate. The snowpack was pretty solid. Assess...move on... I hiked up through the short evergreens, across the bottom of the main chute, and up the island of trees between the chutes. The loose graupel/upside down graupel surface layer was prevalent until ~10,250'. Above this I noticed the surface changing and around 10,500' I noticed the graupel layer was disappearing. It was being covered up by a new, dense layer that was 3-4" thick and well connected. I had finally found Considerable. I dug a pit, snapped some photos, and turned around. Moderate winds in the open alpine. I didn't see plumes off the ridgelines, but experienced many snow devils.

Today was good exercise in finding the tail of the dragon, getting to touch it, feel it, put it back, and retreat without getting caught. I was prepared to ski anything with that crappy crusty graupel covering. I got spooked when the graupel started to get covered. I was still somewhat in the trees and protected, but was getting to the point where the further uphill I moved the islands of safety were starting to become distanced. This new layer covering the graupel was dense, and well connected. I assumed it was deeper and covered more area above me. That area is pretty bald outside of the island of trees between the chutes. Not a good place to be when you collapse a slab from below...

The dense early season snow has opened up alot of terrain. Much of the terrain is covered by this graupel layer, and from what I was seeing today I am assuming many of the wind sheltered northerly aspects above 9,800' have this layer preserved. Today's surface was the classic example of "today's fun layer, tomorrow's danger layer".

Photos show wind blown snow filling in skin track 9,800', snow pit @ 10,500' with HS 110cm. the 3-4" wind slab resting atop 3-4" loose graupel/new snow mixture.

(Forecaster Comments-This is a great write up of a thoughtful assessment in an area known for harboring stiff wind slabs after a south wind event. It has been the site of a number of close calls and a place I think of when south winds blow with no new snow. Thank you. )

Photo 1-Skin Track filling in 9800'

Photo 2- Snowpit 10,500' (Snowpit in group of trees between the chutes)

Photo 3-Close up of the top layers showing graupel under 1f slab