Observations from Flagpole Peak

Warm morning on Flagpole peak. By 8:30am surface snow was melting on solar aspects. This is a generally east facing slope, but on the most north facing aspects some transitional winter snow remained. The most south facing slopes were beginning to resemble corn snow. Due east facing aspects were the most reactive to ski cuts. 

Photo 1: By 9am rollerballs and small loose wet activity was occurring naturally off steep rock faces. Lower on this face were large debris remnants of previous avalanche activity.

Photo 2: Large old crown across entire lower pitch of Ralston peak.  This crown was shockingly large with the naked eye and appeared to essentially extend across the entire slope. 

Photo 3: Loose wet ski cut results before 10am on east facing terrain. Due east seemed to be the sweet spot for loose wet activity. The slightly more northerly aspects were sticky heavy pow, and the more southerly aspects were almost corn, and neither aspect were reactivie to ski cuts and turns.