 Poster: A snowHead
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Here I am dodging some weird brown sticky things in awesome snow.
Living in a country with next to no trees and rare powder days skiing in Japan is really, really different to anything I normally get up to. My ski buddy Nick on the other hand was fresh off a season in Revelstoke so had plenty of practice tree skiing. Mind you, he also managed to dislocate a shoulder and knacker his other ACL during that time in Canada so I was also hoping we would be avoiding hospitals.
We stayed in Hirafu on the north island Hokkaido for eleven days and skied fresh snow every single day. The worst it got was on par with my best days skiing here in Iceland.
We stayed in the Slow Life lodge with a whole bunch of Aussies, a few Kiwis and the odd European. The lodge itself was awesome and a good mix of people of all ages were staying there. It's not a party place which was awesome for us because we were up for first lifts and skiing hard all day before collapsing in bed around ten each night.
Slow Life
The Niseko resort area is divided up into five separate ski areas connected by the top lifts. Grand Hirafu, where we were staying, was by far the busiest and got skied out really quickly. The other areas tended to be quieter and we had a good few days early on scooting round and finding little bits of untouched snow here and there. Consequently we spent a whole lot of time looking for ways to get less crowded fresh tracks. Top of that list was the tiny ski area called Moiwa. It's not part of the official Niseko area so you need a separate lift ticket (we were buying day tickets anyway) but is within spitting distance of Annupurri and you can ski between the two. The highlight of the area is one high speed quad that dumps you off near the peak of the mountain with a fair amount of in-bounds off-piste and one backcountry gate that opens up pretty much the entire mountain. It was also nearly deserted every time we turned up. There were so few people skiing it that we turned up the day after Mike_Pow recommended it to us and with a rare night of no snowfall still skied fresh tracks all day. The queue for the first lift also makes for an awesome fashion show, lots of exotic skis and kit on display in comparison with the more conventional lift lines minutes away. Our two best lift served days were had zipping up and down the quad including a really memorable day on the first chair where we opened up pretty much every slope. When we go back we'll plan more and spend waaay more time away from the main ski area at the nearby resorts as the secret there is well and truly out. You can still have a good time but you're competing for everything much more than you do even a twenty minute ride away.
Awesome house pillows, although I'm not sure it's structurally sound.
The backcountry gates system they have is pretty well thought out although the summit gates are a complete shitshow. Lots of very inexperienced people hiking up and dropping in all over the place on top of one another. We only went up there once and skied down a reasonably steep little gully off the back, almost everyone else dropped in further round or off the front and fell down the length of the pitch in one form or another. It'd be awesome to be at the front of the herd and wasn't bad at all with the route we skied (3rd and 4th down it even a couple of hours after the gates opened) but it's not something I'd be keen to repeat.
Our hands down best day was spent sled tow-in skiing with Par's Powder Paradise. Par has an awesome mountain to play on which has much steeper, treed terrain than you typically find as well as plenty of nice features on the slopes. Plus you have the entire place to yourself.
Lunchbreak from sled skiing.
We also went Cat Skiing with Iwanai Cat Tour which was fun but somewhat lacking in the terrain available. We also got slightly unlucky with the snow which was pretty wind affected with slightly refrozen tracks from the previous day. The entire outfit is run at an old ski area with one working chairlift and the Cat op drives up further but not to the top of the mountain. The rusting ski lifts give the place an interesting ambience. We also provided amusement for the local kids who were super excited to see us. It'd be a great place to get away to for a day trip if you're a reasonable intermediate off-piste skier though.
Slashing big sprays on our own private mountain with the worst conditions of the trip, still pretty damn good!
Inside a dead lift.
Hirafu itself is an awesome little town, very touristy as you'd expect but it has a really high density of really good restaurants. You tend to need to book the more classy places but as long as you're not too fussy about exactly what kind of food you want it was easy to find space somewhere. Onsens are not to be missed either and very welcome given the amount of time I spend in the geothermal pools in Iceland. The 'ritual' is similar as well as is the sublime feeling of sitting in hot water whilst the sky is pouring snow on to you.
The main drag.
Teppanyaki.
TLDR; go skiing in Japan it's absolutely amazing.
Video to follow tomorrow.
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Tue 12-03-13 10:44; edited 1 time in total
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Excellent. Great to see you had an awesome time.
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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?
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Nice report meh...
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Cheers chaps.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Great pics, lovely TR! 
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Looks awesome, thanks for posting
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Oh yeah and one tip, remember to reapply silicon spray to the GoPro housing before going off somewhere so snowy! Too much over the head snow = view being blanked out immediately.
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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.
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meh, Love it!
So, if/when you go again, where would you stay to minimise powder competition/travel to quieter areas? I've been thinking about Black Diamond Lodge, as I'll be going alone and will need to find people to hook up with.
The sled skiing sounds like a must do. I assume taking skins opens up a load of untracked terrain too?
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clarky999, TBH I think you could stay in a similar area (BD Lodge is in Niseko Village so just round the corner from where we were) and hire a car then tootle around like Mike_Pow and Magseven have been in their respective Snow Report threads. Then you get the benefit of being near the amenities and ability to strike out to other areas.
Skinning wise there looked to be loads and I did ski with skins in my bag most days but never used them as there was plentiful snow to be found. Most stuff was easy to get to with short bootpacks that didn't warrant all the faff of using skins. There is so much small-scale, fun looking terrain (and avi barriers) accessible via a quick hoof/skin from near roadside.
The sled skiing really made me want a sled. 
Picking a popular and well advertised in ze movies lodge is probably a good way to go for finding good ski partners if you're going out solo. They also do a bunch of guided stuff but are massively booked out in advance from the looks of things.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I think we chatted one day in Moiwa! Nice vid.
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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.
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jimmer, getting off the bus?
Small world! 
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Yeah yeah! Got a few good runs in that day before the lift shut again.
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You know it makes sense.
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Yer we were on the first lift that day, which was also the one day we didn't pack skins. You could keep going all day with reasonably quick laps, with a teensy bit of effort from the double and saw some guys doing just that a bit later on.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Yeah we ended up building a little jump, the guys I was with weren't keen for a hike.
I think you just liked my Asahidake vid on vimeo, where'd you see it?
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Poster: A snowHead
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jimmer, yup, I found another one of your videos on here trying to work out who you were and found it on Vimeo.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Ah got it! I've only shared that on Facebook so wondered how you'd seen it. Was planning on writing a TR like this one, but I have a broken hand atm, which makes typing frustrating!
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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?
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meh, Nice. I really have got to get out to Japan next season...
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Love the trees in pic 1, reminds me a bit of the W Forest on la Mole (the mountain you see from Geneva as you look towards mt Blanc)
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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That's an awesome shot!
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Just saw the vid. Brilliant...
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Cheers!
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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.
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Very nice! Great video and tune. Sod the camera let's just ski! Haha.
Back again next year....?
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The guy and his girlfriend who were out with me got engaged, so next year it's a wedding in Scotland (where we all met) and possible stag do touring here in Iceland or the Alps. 2015 for sure though! 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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excellent report meh - completely agree. I was with nick parks, a UK IFGMA guide and a group of 12 in total from 17 Feb for 8 days. we based at Green Leaf in Niseko Village and used Black Diamond for beers and a lodge atmosphere. On balance i think you are right - staying in Hirafu is better as there are really no restaurants at Niseko Village except for the Green Leaf and Hilton hotel restaurants and the Black Diamond. but clarky999 if you were skiing with Black DIamond their lodge would obviously be ideal
we used 2 local guides, one was Toshi from Black Diamond (not on the website but a good guy - split snowboarder with skins).
for good off piste skiers i think it absolutely a must to have access to transport and to buy day passes only at Niseko. we had 4 days included as part of our package and only skied 1 day because the top gates were shut (wind) on all of the other days.
having said that, we skied other places (often just a ski hill with one lift) including chisenupuri, kirora etc before moving to asahidake. all were excellent in their own ways and definitely part of the experience.
upsides: deep and high quality powder with excellent tree skiing in a distinctively different ski region with food, beer, onsens, people all a positive
downsides: shortish pitches (at least where we were and even with skins), cold, windy and snowing most of the time in Feb
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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.
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| chrisJersey wrote: |
| excellent report meh - completely agree. I was with nick parks, a UK IFGMA guide and a group of 12 in total from 17 Feb for 8 days. we based at Green Leaf in Niseko Village and used Black Diamond for beers and a lodge atmosphere. On balance i think you are right - staying in Hirafu is better as there are really no restaurants at Niseko Village except for the Green Leaf and Hilton hotel restaurants and the Black Diamond. but clarky999 if you were skiing with Black DIamond their lodge would obviously be ideal |
Far more choice in Hirafu.
Prativo, opposite the Black Diamond offices, is an excellent restaurant offering a JPY 1,500 lunch special and JPY 4,000 dinner set.
| Quote: |
| for good off piste skiers i think it absolutely a must to have access to transport and to buy day passes only at Niseko. we had 4 days included as part of our package and only skied 1 day because the top gates were shut (wind) on all of the other days. |
Definitely.
| Quote: |
| having said that, we skied other places (often just a ski hill with one lift) including chisenupuri, kirora etc before moving to asahidake. all were excellent in their own ways and definitely part of the experience. |
That's the charm of this part of Hokkaido. Lots of smaller ski hills with good terrain and no competition for the powder.
| Quote: |
upsides: deep and high quality powder with excellent tree skiing in a distinctively different ski region with food, beer, onsens, people all a positive
downsides: shortish pitches (at least where we were and even with skins), cold, windy and snowing most of the time in Feb |
The wind has been a pain in the back bottom this winter.
However "deep and high quality powder" normally comes as a result of "cold and snowing most of the time".
If you're looking for clearer weather with powder still to be had then March is the go.
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| Mike Pow wrote: |
| The wind has been a pain in the back bottom this winter. |
Isn't that the truth. It's my third year here, and this winter has certainly been the windiest. (Written as another gale is raging outside!)
How about in your experience, Mike?
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You know it makes sense.
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one thing I should have said is that I heliski in Canada fairly regularly and, for those like me travelling from the UK, I dont think Hokkaido should put people off based on distance. It is actually a pretty similiar journey and time zone wise I actually prefer heading East. I will definitely be back and envy you guys who are based there.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| MagSeven wrote: |
| Mike Pow wrote: |
| The wind has been a pain in the back bottom this winter. |
Isn't that the truth. It's my third year here, and this winter has certainly been the windiest. (Written as another gale is raging outside!)
How about in your experience, Mike? |
Windiest in my 6 winters. By a long way.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| chrisJersey wrote: |
| one thing I should have said is that I heliski in Canada fairly regularly and, for those like me travelling from the UK, I dont think Hokkaido should put people off based on distance. It is actually a pretty similiar journey and time zone wise I actually prefer heading East. I will definitely be back and envy you guys who are based there. |
Great to hear.
I've skied with a couple of guys who've heliskied prior to skiing on Hokkaido and whilst they've enjoyed the experience they haven't returned to Hokkaido.
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