It was 21 Degrees on the peak with a brisk wind blowing out of the North East.  I had dressed for how I wanted it to be and was found wanting.  With  a short sleeve shirt, a light shell, no hat and spring gloves left me wishing I had paid attention to the fact sheet.  There was tenderizing passes in Mineral Basin, but the only slightly velvety feel needed another hour to mature.  I took a run on the front side to get to the Forklift Chair to let softening occur, and I found fun tenderizing lines that made the descent a delight, especially since I was in a hurry to get out of the cold.  I had the ice cream head ache going when I walked in the door of the Forklift, glad to have the warmth of the fire.    Tomorrow, look for another cold morning, and I won’t be caught un clothed again.  The cold of the day made the quality of the snow stand up all day until closing, when there was only the last lowest sections that got sticky.  11:00 Am was the beginning of the quality softening so a later start is not a bad idea, but I will be there for the first Boat non the less, and I will make another decision to stay or hit the Chair to let the day warm up.    On note of caution;   the exit out of Mark Malu through Gobblin Gully has melted off in a big way, with a rock reef exposed in the middle.  The Grooming crew did what they could to put some cover there, but the roots and rocks were problematic.   I backed off on the knoll to sus the situation, only to have three fast movers go ripping into the turbulence at high speed.  DOH!!!!   That was interesting watching that backpedal.    Late season snow pack requires a bit of caution, so look first then blast.   IBBY!!

This entry was posted on Monday, May 7th, 2012 at 4:13 pm and is filed under Snow Reports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.