With the unusually warm temps heating up the pack, the Bird Ops have scaled the opening time earlier to 8AM and closing at 2PM. While that had no impact on the actual time of the break, the frozen feel was going to take a bit to take hold. The Peruvian Gulch and Gad Valley were very firm and it was going to take till 11AM for the break to happen when there was a short window of the sorbet quality before the pack slushed out. I bailed as the sticky spots began to crop up on the flats, making the glide factor difficult to maintain. The melt off is beginning to become noticeable on many areas where the Sun has been working and where the grooming efforts have kicked up some rock pockets. Keep an eye out and approach the early morning lines with great care and respect for the frozen variations.
Tomorrow, look for another overnight freeze, but I expect the break to be fast and early. The same break pattern will likely be happening, with Mineral Basin offering the first break of the pack. Depending on the low temps overnight, expect the break to follow a similar rotation. While there are indications of the melt off, coverage remains quite good and predictable. Traffic is light and fast turnaround times are happening all day. Watch your SIX!!