Agreed about the human waste, I saw several wag bags too. Why use them if you are just going to leave them?! One was left in a stream it seemed right were someone might think was a good water source, gross.
You said the switchbacks were not usable, I didn't use them but I did speak to 2 people who summited and descended using the switchbacks and not the chute. they said one in their party turned back out of fear, but that they made it without trouble.
you mentioned after crest having to go off the trial, I did not experience that.
You saw the bag I was talking about at Trailside Meadow. I moved that bag (ewe) from the middle of stream as far as I could from water and covered it with a large stone. Fortunately I had antiseptic wipes! It had been damaged by critters, so may have been dragged to the location we saw. As you said, Why?!
Past trail crest there were about 2-4 snow/ice areas that were maybe 3-6 above the trail and between 8-12 in length. If you were moving at a good clip you probably didn't notice trail below as these were well worn tracks, and probably looked like the trail.
