Cirque Peak Traverse! Up New Army Pass and down Cottonwood. The trail is mostly snow-free up to NAP. There are some snowfields to cross, but nothing too difficult until higher up. About 100 ft below the pass, the way is blocked by a steep snow slope - the remnants of a cornice. At that point it was choose your own adventure: To the left was 70 degree snow with a nasty run out. To the right was a class 3/4 crack system. Having brought an ice axe, I climbed the snow, kicking deep, downward sloping steps for security. Once over the pass, the going was easy and the entire ridge all the way to Cottonwood Pass was snow-free. Before dropping down to Chicken Spring Lake, I made the extra hike up Trailmaster, where I ran into 3 female Bighorn Sheep! The bowl above Chicken Spring Lake was also free of snow, making for an easy scree descent to the lake and the PCT. Awesome trip. Total outing time: 8:45 h.