Mike, that video is fantastic!
You ski through some very small gaps in the trees at speed and I can't imagine that your view of what's ahead is that great judging by all the snow that's flying at your head!
Impressive!
Iwan
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Thanks Pendantica and rob@rar.
Cheers imorris. If only I could have run through very small gaps at speed. Might have had my call up in the 80s
DAY 34 : MONDAY 30 JANUARY 2012
360Niseko reported 9 cm of new snow in Hirafu village
In a former life Ian M used to manage the Hirafu Chalet and in the winter of 2005 hosted Porter Fox and Dave Reddick from Powder magazine who were over doing a feature on Niseko.
Ian M and Porter kept in touch over the years and when it was time (long overdue) for Porter to return to Hokkaido there was only one call he was making.
Having experienced and written about the deep powder skiing of the Niseko Resort Area, Porter was looking to show a different side to Hokkaido.
Hence this ski touring trip to the Tokachi range and the hope of skiing and showcasing more technical, alpine terrain.
Photographer Jordan Manley was in the Niseko Resort Area with skiers Chad Sayers, Forrest Coots and Andre skiing and filming for the forthcoming Japan: A Skier’s Journey Ep 1 [Season 3] and Porter had asked them to head north the week before him to get the images to accompany his feature in next season's Powder.
Ian M and Porter whisky shopping en route to Ryouunkaku Onsen, Tokachi
An hour later the owner of Ryouunkaku Onsen, Aida san, and her two dogs Cinnamon and Milk greeted us with yelps and barks and growls. The dogs not Aida san.
Our room wasn't ready on our arrival but a changing room had been set up for us to get ready to go skinning and skiing.
Unlike nearby Asahidake and Kurodake, the area has neither lifts nor mechanised uplift (cat skiing).
It was impressive to see Porter rally after an overnight flight from Kelowna, BC to Seattle, Washington to LA to Tokyo to Asahikawa and he perfectly embodied the Jaded Local's take on Ski Magazine Editors in the December 2011 issue of Powder
Quote:
Bar Tabs and Free Goggles
A lot of people think that being a pro skier is the Ultimate Job in the industry. It's not. That's just being dumb enough to risk it all for an illusory Shot At The Big Time. Pros get the glamour, but in the end they're essentially just Trained Stunt Monkeys, and there's a huge lineup og younger up-and-coming primates willing to gamble a life of quadriplegia for a fist bump and middling travel budget.
A ski magazine editor, on the other hand, gets to go to all the cool places the pros go, and unlike them, can call cowdoo when he doesn't feel like tempting the Wheelchair Of Fate - and has corporate health insurance for when he does. If the snow is chundery, or when he's tired from making laps past the pros while they Wait For the Light, he can retire to the bar with the ol' company credit card. There he'll most likely wax poetically to the resort P.R. girl about skiing the midnight sun in Norway.
Sure, there are standards and qualifications that go way beyond most editorial positions. You have to ski well enough to show up anywhere in the world and follow ripping locals and pros down unfamiliar terrain after a 12-hour flight and a hard night of drinking homemade 100-proof schnapps. And you have to understand the sport well enough to appreciate the goods when they're in front of you, analyze foreign snowpack, know the difference between "switch" and "fakie", be able to talk calmly to police officers in strange countries, and charm the pants off the people that run ski area marketing departments.
You can't flinch at slough management on exposed terrain and you have to be comfortable with second-year Jackson locals vibing you on the Sublette Chair, aspiring Tahoe big-mountain specialists who still think it's 2002 and their soul patch is "edgy," Coloradoans who call a 70-inch base "stacked" and Vermonters who insist their secret stash is "the best poo-poo East of the Mississippi." And most importantly, you have to drink. And not recreationally.
If you meet one of them, it will probably go something like this:
"Hey, how's it going? I'm from Powder magazine. Yeah, we're, um, doing a story on, ummmm, the scene here. So anyway, I was wondering if you could:
a) "Mount and tune these new skis that the product manager gave me after I got him wasted at SIA?"
or:
b) "Show me where the best snow on the mountain is?"
followed by:
c) "Step aside so I can ski this fresh line now? You may get mentioned in the magazine. Here's some stickers."
and later, at the bar
d) "Tell me your girlfriend's name again?"
The crucial point to remember when a ski magazine editor asks you one of these questions is: Bar Tab. They will have one, a formidable one, and you can be a part of it. Decline the stickers, request a pair of next year's goggles (editors throw them away after two to three uses), do not tell them your girlfriend's name,a nd demand to know where the Bar Tab will be. Not only will they appreciate your natural aptitude for The Industry and possibly offer you an internship, they will probably be glad to have s6meone to help them with their boozy Brand Management burden.
The next day, as you proudly sport your new goggles and brutal hangover in the lift-line at Mount Bumf*ck and wonder why your girlfriend is so quiet, remember that Mr. Editor is now flying off to Italy or Japan, where he will have to sort out whether the local guy is saying "Go!" or "No!" as he blearily dodges slough, while making jump turns on poorly-tuned unfamiliar skis over what may be a massive dead-end cliff. If they survive that, they'll have to stay up all night dancing to crappy techno and reflexively hitting on anything that moves, while once again ceremonially sacrificing the expense account, several pairs of free goggles, and their battered livers...all for Ski Journalism.
Rest assured, even while pro skiers sleep soundly in their beds dreaming of being pro snowboarders, somewhere a ski magazine editor is turning coroprate dollars into an Armageddon-style bar tab, so that all of us can partake in the Spirit of Skiing
Jaded Local
Powder magazine
December 2011
Some but not all of the above came to pass, but Revelstoke didn't get off so lightly!
Porter kindly and expertly cut and fit my new skins and before we knew it we were out the door and on the skin track to discover what this part of the Tokachi range was all about.
Ryouunkaku Onsen and what the locals have named the TGR face
The area immediately around and below the onsen is heavily treed with a combination of old growth pine and Dr Seuss birch.
But very quickly you ascend above treeline to interconnected amphitheatres of steep faces scarred by volcanic activity. The rocks beneath your skis popping out on the windblown snowpack are yellow and sulphurous and leave streaks on your skins and your bases.
Heading up
to this
Porter in the Tokachi range
We made good time getting to our first drop in point. The snow was wind affected powder 10cm thick on a hard wind and sun crusted layer 40cm thick.
Getting ready to drop in
Porter dropped in first, followed by Ian M, and me playing tail gun charlie taking pics.
Porter skiing in the Tokachi range
Ian M skiing in the Tokachi range
On the second pitch I set off first and immediately broke through both crusts and lost a ski. Thankfully the pitch wasn't too long as I watched my ski make better turns than I did.
Porter and Ian M passed me and then I skied on one ski down the face to retrieve my ski.
Ian M headed back to the hotel to meet up with Takahiro Nakanishi - our photographer and local knowledge guy for the coming days.
Porter & I headed back up but on a different aspect to find better snow. We did. Although the clouds had rolled in and the sking was interesting to say the least.
We dropped into a nice gully that ran out to an area melted dry by the hot water and gasses continuously pumping out of the ground.
Porter on our second line in the Tokachi range
We skied back to the hotel to be met by Ian M and Taka bearing gifts of Sapporo classic.
Then it was a quick change in our tatami room and down to the basement for a much anticipated indoor and outdoor onsen, the waters muddy and warm.
Dinner at 6pm consisted of sashimi, nabe, rice, pickled vegetables, miso soup and beer. And lovely it was too.
Suitably refreshed we retired some time later hoping for sunshine on our second day.
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Nice. I definitely want to get up to Tokachidake this season. Was up there hiking over the summer a couple of times and really want to return with my skis!
After all it is free
After all it is free
DAY 37 : THURSDAY 02 FEBRUARY 2012
360Niseko reported 0 cm of new snow in Hirafu village
The day broke cold and blue and we quickly slipped into our morning routine of onsen, breakfast, checking the weather forecast, and deciding on the route(s) for the day.
Our tatami room was spacious and warm, so there was no problem drying out the kit overnight.
Pre-dawn at Ryouunkaku Onsen hotel
Porter starting on the feature
The genkan at Ryouunkaku Onsen hotel
The onsen inside
and out
Taka and Ian M checking out the weather forecast and organising the day
Porter checking out the line he wanted to ski in 'TGR' face
The fox checking out the Fox
Ian M and Taka discussing the line and the snow conditions
Yesterday's playground
And so it was decided, 'TGR' face was a go and this was the chute we were hoping to ski
Ian M graciously took one for the team and ferried us to and from the starting point of the tour way down the access road.
Porter crossing the stream that leads to the start of the skin track through the trees and then up to the top of 'TGR' face.
The skin track and route to the top were both obvious and straightforward and it took us around 2 hrs. This was the first longish tour I'd done in almost 5 years and I was very grateful to be on my current set up of Movement Jam skis, Dynafit FT bindings and Dynafit TLT5 Performance boots. It was a breeze.
The view down to Ryouunkaku Onsen hotel and across to Tokachidake once we got above treeline
Porter skinning
Taka skinning
As we got into the alpine the wind picked up and the temperature plummeted to -20 C. Taka expertly negotiated the moonscape on the summit plateau to drop us into the start of the chute.
It was a tad windy and cold at the top of the chute
But very quickly we hit paydirt.
Porter skiing the chute on 'TGR' face
The snow was a little windblown up high, but once we dropped into the chute and the shadows it was knee deep dust.
Taka skiing the lower section of the chute just above the frozen waterfall
Porter on the sidewall of the chute waiting for Taka to drop below the ice
Porter dropping in to the last of the chute
Once out of the chute it was an easy traverse through the trees beside the river to get back to our starting point.
Ian M was waiting for us at the trailhead and in 10 mins we were back at the hotel ordering a late lunch.
After lunch we made two laps of the terrain right in front of the hotel this time with Ian M, and then retired to the onsen, Sapporo Classic in hand, for a soak and a soothe.
The vista from the hotel
Dinner was superb with a variety of tastes, textures and temperatures
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
DAY 38 : FRIDAY 03 FEBRUARY 2012
360Niseko reported 19 cm of new snow in Hirafu village
A dusting of snow overnight at the hotel combined with fog and low visibility, so we decided the morning's entertainment was to be the trees either side of yesterday's skin track up to 'TGR' face.
Knee to mid thigh deep turns in light pow through widely spaced old growth conifer had me thinking back to my winters in Montana and BC.
Once again Ian M was the ferryman for Porter, Taka and I and after lunch back at the hotel Porter and Taka toured over to Hakuginso Onsen hotel where Ian M and I met them for a post-ski soak.
This hotel was newer and a lot fancier than ours, but was too stuffy for my liking.
While we were waiting to go in for dinner the owner joined us for a chat and through the expert translation from Ian M we found out about the history of the onsen and his family, and how he used to have to ski in to town and tour back with all the provisions before they laid and plowed the road right to the front door. A round trip of 12 miles.
He proudly showed us photographs of himself and his wife hosting the Emperor's cousin at the hotel in their younger days.
And the touring gear he used up until 3 years ago - Karhu skis with Fritschi bindings and Salomon rear entry boots - when he was on ski patrol in the area. At 77 years of age.
His wife hurrumphed in the background calling him an old fool.
Once again dinner was superb.
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
DAY 39 : SATURDAY 04 FEBRUARY 2012
360Niseko reported 17 cm of new snow in Hirafu village
After yesterday's grey we woke to another bluebird morning.
We were shipping out today to get back to Hirafu for dinner & drinks, but not before we snuck in a quick tour from Hakuginso Onsen Hotel to the volcano.
Ian M and Porter in the Hakuginso Onsen Hotel car park
Taka and Porter in the car park (no Taka's not taking a leak)
Taka and Porter setting off from Hakuginso Onsen Hotel
Taka and Porter with the steam jets in sight
Unknown Japanese skier enjoying the powder as we skinned up
As we got nearer to our goal the weather closed in, so we made the decision to get a few quick pics and then head back to our pick-up point
Taka almost at our turn around point
Porter at the turn around point
Porter and Taka at the turn around point
Taka at work
The turns were fast and smooth in boot top powder on a very relaxed pitch.
When we got back to our hotel to change out of our gear, grab a bite to eat, and check out, the owner's ski boots were out next to his skis. He was nowhere to be seen and we couldn't work out if he'd put them out intending to go for a ski or his wife had put them out for the rubbish collectors.
Two ladies having lunch at Ryouunkaku Onsen Hotel
As I was about to leave I saw this trinket on the window sill which encapsulated our stay at the hotel
We had a fabulous time in the Tokachi range and had tremendous luck with the weather window and snow stability.
If you're looking for a different Hokkaido experience, then add this one to the list.
We headed back to Hirafu in a snowstorm and arrived in the village in time for dinner & drinks and the Italy v Ireland 6N rugby match at Paddy McGinty's.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
Loving your reports Mike!
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
Thanks rob@rar
DAY 40 : SUNDAY 05 FEBRUARY 2012
360Niseko reported 20 cm of new snow in Hirafu village
After a very expensive and underwhelming breakfast at Downtown Cafe I skied Grand Hirafu with Sally Townsend. Excellent conditions on and off piste and surprisingly quiet for a Sunday powder day.
Porter spent the day lapping Chair 4 and the hike to the peak with Taka. When he was here to write the article about Niseko for Powder magazine the peak wasn't open. He was suitably impressed with the vertical and waist deep powder off the top this time around.
Moondrop: Rebirth on the Northern Island
Porter Fox
Powder Magazine
After lunch I skied one run in Miharashi with Ian M - thigh deep and light - before heading to Chitose to pick up my girlfriend Nerys Royal.
This was her first visit to Hokkaido and her first taste of skiing. It was fabulous to see her after 6 weeks apart and we had lots to catch up on.
We had decided to give skiing a go early on in her trip and booked into the Mountain Hotel at Kiroro for 3 nights and 3 days of skiing. If Nerys didn't get on with it, then we would go on the road around Hokkaido sightseeing.
DAY 41 : MONDAY 06 FEBRUARY 2012
360Niseko reported 22 cm of new snow in Hirafu village
After a lie-in and a gorgeous breakfast at the Mountain Hotel buffet, Nerys & I headed to the Kiroro rental shop to hire her equipment.
This is how it should be done. Start to finish in about 15 minutes. Fantastic service.
All my friends said I was crazy to teach Nerys to ski. A recipe for disaster and a return to life as one more skiing bachelor.
I was more apprehensive about teaching an absolute beginner for the first time in four seasons.
I needn't have worried. Nerys was a model student.
We started sliding on one ski at 10am and by 11am we were on the Family Lift skiing the Family Gelande course (green).
By 12.15 she was skiing gliding wedge to matching parallel on the Family Gelande course unassisted.
After a leisurely lunch we went back to the Family Lift for one run and then progressed to the Yoichi No.1 Express quad chair and three runs on the Yoichi No.1 course (green).
A fabulous first day of skiing for Nerys.
After a second day skiing at Grand Hirafu and Hanazono Porter, Taka and Ian M travelled over to Kiroro for the night.
Dinner was the all you can eat buffet at the Mountain Hotel combined with the JPY 1,500 60-minute Nomi hodai (all you can drink).
DAY 42 : TUESDAY 07 FEBRUARY 2012
360Niseko reported 0 cm of new snow in Hirafu village
Nerys graciously gave me the pass to ski with Ian M, Porter and Taka in the am on Porter's last ski day on Hokkaido. Lap after lap of mid-thigh powder off the gondola. Spectacular.
Look out for Porter's feature on Tokachi in next season's Powder magazine
After lunch it was an afternoon of skiing with Nerys. Superb. Two laps of the Yoichi No.1 course (green), one run on the gondola and the Asari Panorama course (green), and one more lap on the Yoichi No.1 course (green) for good measure.
An afternoon of gliding and sliding. She's loving it.
Nerys Royal on the Yoichi No.1 course, Kiroro
Nerys in the Kiroro gondola
Nerys' second day of skiing and already skiing parallel from the top of Kiroro, Hokkaido
The gondola was on wind hold all day for Nerys' third day on snow, so we did 4 laps on the Yoichi #1 Express quad in the am skiing the Yoichi #1-B course (green run).
We had originally planned to stay 3 nights at the Mountain Hotel and ski 3 days at Kiroro and then move on to pastures new.
But Nerys had the bug!
2 laps on the Yoichi #1 Express quad skiing the Yoichi #1-B course (green run) and the Yoichi #1-B course (red run) as a warm up, followed by 2 laps on the gondola skiing the Asari Panorama Course (green run) and the Asari Dynamic course (red run).
Nerys in the Kiroro gondola (it was cold today)
After lunch we did 2 laps on the Yoichi #1 Express quad skiing the Yoichi #1-B course (red run) and 2 laps on Nagamine #2 Express quad skiing the Nagamine #2-C course (red run).
A big fourth day on snow with the big challenge of the Nagamine #2-C course (red run).
Nerys on the Nagamine #2-C course with Otaru and the ocean in the background
Great day. Nerys really getting the 'see saw' motion on steeper slopes.
There was a fair bit of snow in the car park this morning as I packed up the car.
The Probox in the Mountain Hotel car park, Kiroro
And there was a fair bit of snow all over the mountain too.
We warmed up with one lap on the Yoichi #1 Express quad skiing the Yoichi #1-B course (green run) followed by one lap on the Nagamine #2 Express quad skiing the Nagamine #2-C course (red run). It was like skiing inside a golf ball fitted to an air pump. Not exactly what you'd call stellar conditions but Nerys skied it really well.
So we headed lower down the mountain and skied 10 laps on the Center Express quad either side of lunch - three times skiing Center-B course (red run) and seven times skiing Center-A course (red run).
Epic day again.
Nerys Royal's fifth day of skiing Kiroro and on the fifth day she skied powder!
Excellent progress. Good news all round as it means you won't have to dump her for not falling in love with skiing!
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
'Listen to the snow, listen to the mountain' - Mike Pow 2012
Sounds like something I've heard before - 'Feel the rhythm, feel the rhyme, get on up, it's bobsled time' - Cool Runnings 1993
And it works. Nerys is skiing more powder in 5 days than I had skiied in 15 years before arriving in Canada
Excellent progress. Good news all round as it means you won't have to dump her for not falling in love with skiing!
Yeah she really bought into it. Hence the quick progession. Some would look at it as dumping me for loving the snow too much.
Balance, practicing what I teach
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
johnniebalfour wrote:
'Listen to the snow, listen to the mountain' - Mike Pow 2012
Sounds like something I've heard before - 'Feel the rhythm, feel the rhyme, get on up, it's bobsled time' - Cool Runnings 1993
And it works. Nerys is skiing more powder in 5 days than I had skiied in 15 years before arriving in Canada
Yep. Natural progression, not fighting it.
After all it is free
After all it is free
DAY 46 : SATURDAY 11 FEBRUARY 2012
360Niseko reported 14 cm of new snow in Hirafu village
After a very enjoyable and successful five days skiing at Kiroro we took the weekend off snow to recharge and take in a few of the sights, sounds, and tastes of the Shiribetsu region in winter.
We had lunch at Yotei Maru Kaiten Sushi sushi train restaurant in Kutchan and then drove to Yoichi to sample whisky at the Nikka Whisky distillery.
Sunday is the most popular day to ski in and around the Niseko Resort Area - first day of the holiday for anyone who arrived on Saturday combined with the local Japanese skiers - so Nerys and I took the train from Kutchan to Sapporo to catch the final day of the Sapporo Snow Festival.
The second sunny day in a row for Nerys' seventh day on snow.
So we headed to Rusutsu and Nerys' third resort on her ski tour.
The slopes were deserted, the sun was shining, the views of Shiribetsudake, Mt Yotei and the Niseko Resort Area were superb. You could see Lake Toya and the ocean.
And the snow on and off the groomed runs was perfect for Nerys to try some more off-piste.
Nerys skiing the red course off the East Quad at East Mountain, Rusutsu
For Valentine's dinner we went to A-bu-cha 2 in Hirafu
We had a selection of the restaurant's finest - sashimi, tempura squid, skewers, tofu & tuna salad, edamame, spring rolls - and a fabulous new cocktail to me called the Early Grey Ginger. A blend of Early Grey tea liqueur, ginger ale, a slice of lime, on the rocks. Give it a shot, or several!
In Japan, Valentine's Day is when the guys get spoiled. The gift being chocolate. Always liked Japan.
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Mike Pow, wow, I'm perfectly certain I couldn't ski like that after only seven days!
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Wow indeed pedantica. She's a ripper. And she'll love your comment. Thanks.
And I definitely wasn't skiing like that after seven days.
DAY 50 : WEDNESDAY 15 FEBRUARY 2012
360Niseko reported 11 cm of new snow in Hirafu village
Blowing a gale in Higashiyama so Nerys decided to take the day off from skiing.
I spent the morning at Hanazono skiing with Andy Laidlaw giving him a tune-up before his upcoming heli-week at Galena Lodge with Canadian Mountain Holidays (CMH).
Back to winter for Nerys' eighth day on snow, and back to Kiroro.
For Nerys' last two days skiing on Hokkaido (for this trip ) we took it back to where it all started.
Nerys was in the same boots - the Head Edge + 8.5 which were comfortable, warm, and which hadn't given her any problems the first 5 days - but I changed her from a beginner Salomon ski in a 151 cm with a tip of 118 and a waist of 78 to the 152 cm Vist Cross Over Lady with a 124-77-110 profile and a 11m turning radius.
A truly fabulous ski and the right platform for Nerys now that she was starting to transition from pivotted turns to rounded, edged turns. The wider tip also worked really well on the groomers, the chopped, and the untracked powder.
The evidence m'lord
Nerys Royal warming up on the Yoichi #1-B Course (green course) at Kiroro
Then it was time to go exploring the powder on the fringes of the runs.
After lunch Nerys got boot top deep in 'Walk in the Woods'. A little uncomfortable at times but the lower section was smooth and relaxed and the run out back to the piste was elegant.
But it gave her the confidence to try the trees skier's left off the top of the mountain
Another fabulous day and another day of significant improvement for Nerys.
Unfortunately all good things have to come to an end (for Nerys skiing wise at least) but we are both really happy that she loves Hokkaido, loves skiing, and has taken to the sport so quickly.
Fourteen days on Hokkaido, nine days skiing, three resorts, 203 cm of powder, sunshine, Hokkaido seafood, Otaru Snow Light Festival, Sapporo Snow Festival and more snow than she's ever seen in her life. Cumulative!
For her at least (ski) life begins at 40!
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Mike Pow, a really heart-warming story. Thanks to both of you for letting us share it. I just love the way Nerys doesn't fight the snow, but simply lets it support her. Extraordinary confidence for a beginner and a late-ish beginner at that. Fantastic.
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Thanks for following the story as it unfolded, and thanks for your comments.
Nerys is chuffed
Last edited by Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person on Sat 10-03-12 11:45; edited 1 time in total
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Mike Pow wrote:
Nerys Royal skiing the trees at Kiroro!
The only thing which is stopping that being the perfect video is the fact that the cameraman didn't ski in to a tree when filming his charge
Will look forward to more instalments next season.
FAQ
Poster: A snowHead
