February 2, 2003, Crystal Mountain BC

After checking in with ski Patrol and getting some beta on conditions for the day, my partner BS & I headed up Sunday am up to the ridgeline above Hen Skin Lake. The ridge is located between Bear Gap and Three-Way peak to the West. The rolling slopes on our ascent showed obvious signs of fun powder to be had though some tracks had been planted here already in places. After one short run down the N.E. aspects we ascended the ridge again for a good long "fall-liner" run down the S-S.E. side of the obvious ridge during the midday. Luckily for us the prevailing weather for the day was overcast to slightly foggy which tended to protect these S. aspects. Though we noticed in the last 24 hours the S. slopes at 6,000ft had received a few moments(if only a few minutes) of sun that crusted the surface. The skiing was still excellent though. This slope was fairly open and my partner did manage to dig up a slide after skiing over a small rock outcropping. It started fairly loose then gained strength and speed and kicked up some fairly sizeable blocks after it cemented up in the trees below this 700' vert slope of 35-38 deg.. My partner skied to the side and was fortunately missed by the snow. After another "safely guessed" lap on the S side we finished the day with a longer descent down the N aspects of this location to the ski area. Good day!