Snow that has sat around since October has deteriorated into a weak base of loose, sugary, faceted snow. You can find this weak snow on mid and upper elevation slopes that face NW-N-W. The photo below illustrates the early December snow, separated from the October snow by a melt freeze crust. Persistent weak layers of loose, sugary, faceted snow exist above, and below the crust. This is an unstable base. Though the danger is growing increasingly unlikely, human triggered avalanches, breaking down into this weak, sugary snow are still possible on steep, upper elevation slopes with a northerly aspect.