I was heading up to Seattle for a social event, by way of a work meeting in Washington, DC. The timing worked out that I had an extra day, so I brought my backcountry setup the whole way through with me and I teamed up with my friend Nick to get some skiing in.
Just my luck, I showed up at the tail end of a 30+ day dry spell and the snow was horrendous. The company was great, but this was almost certainly the worst skiing conditions I have ever experienced. We wended our way up through Alpental Backcountry towards Source Lake, with a hope to ascend towards Chair Peak and get a good descent.
We encountered miserable ice, alternating between flat sheets with zero traction and fields of frozen death cookies. We bailed when our skins couldn't hold traction, and suffered through a miserable descent. I'd love to come back here when conditions are not all-time horrible. Still better than a day in the office.