The snow line started just below 4,000ft, but it was a meager 5” from the night before. We played snowbridge Squid Games to see not if, but when, we’d slip and fall or punch through old snow crusts. All this snow had melted out by the time we descended (in ski boots, of course). Repeat: as of 3/24, there is basically no snow on the Eldorado boulder field.

At the top of the boulder field, we were rewarded with smooth skinning and epic views. We roped up for the glacier crossing, but everything looked sealed up and stable. No major causes for concern in the snowpack, either. I’d had dreams of skiing the Eggplant, but this was way too windloaded to contemplate.

We skinned up to the knife edge with ski crampons, then booted the last 100ft in stable snow. The summit face had a small cornice on it with icy patches below so we skied from the  booter. Snow varied from sastrugi, ice pellets, and punchable wind crust to sun crust, cream cheese, and glue.

Ski mountaineering would be boring if we got great snow, though. It’s about the close connections we make with each other, in ethereal places. Crying beholding the beauty of the Boston Basin (or is that just me?). Testing our limits with devil’s club, slide alder, and big ass logs. I never remember it being this schwacky, but I always remember it being this fun.