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Nozawa Now! Weather and snow reports direct from Nozawa.
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Last Updated : Saturday 4th February 2012, 2:41PM
 
Last Updated: Saturday 4th February 2012, 2:41PM
New snowfall 0cm (village); up to 2cm (up top); 2cm on Uenotaira
Previous day 315cm (village); 460cm (upper)
Current snow depth 315cm (village); 420cm (upper)
Temperature bottom 2 C
Temperature top -3 C
Weather condition Light snow early then blue skies now cloud rolling in
Wind condition Moderate to Strong Winds
Visibility Pretty good all over
Lift operation The whole resort is operational

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Current Weather Conditions at Nozawa Onsen - Live Feedback
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Lower numbers in brackets are votes registered today since 0am.
Next Update due at 3:30pm, 4th February.
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Saturday 4th February 2012, 2:41PM
Weather conditions: Light snow early then blue skies now cloud rolling in
New snowfall: 0cm (village); up to 2cm (up top); 2cm on Uenotaira
Snow depth: 315cm (village); 420cm (upper)
Yesterday was the goods as far as ski days go with all the elements coming together there were lots of very happy people rolling down the slopes.

Did not get any snow overnight for a change, which was kind of nice and after a bit of light snow this morning the sun is out again. Not sure how long it will last though. Forecast is for the next big system to hit on Monday night.
The sun yesterday was a blessing and helped a lot with the snow clearing efforts. Everyone that was not up the mountain was in to it and it is amazing what can be achieved in a day.

A big thank you to all the resort staff, lodges staff and the community as a whole for your efforts. Has been a big extra workload clearing all the snow this season but everyone worked together and greeted the guests with a smile as always.

Should be another great day up the slopes today but a bit busy with the weekend crowd. Quite a lot of fun events ahead in Nozawa during February and March including the Jazz Festival on February 18th and then various festivals thru March, with all this snow it is going to be a great time to be in the mountains.

Hikage Gondola is back in motion too today!

Current Official Snow Depths Numbers:

Yamabiko:
420cm

Uenotaira:
410cm

Nagasaka:
315cm

Current Lift operations:
All open

Current courses open:
All open
 
Friday 3rd February 2012, 11:11AM
Weather conditions: Bluebird Day seems like a while since wrote that!
New snowfall: 35cm (village); up to 60cm (up top); 75cm on Uenotaira
Snow depth: 315cm (village); 460cm (upper)
The snow started dumping around sunset last night and within about 3 hours we had accumulated over 30cm. This is no exaggeration! It was heavy and beautiful to watch as everything just got completely covered in the white powder.

It kept going throughout the night and up top we had a huge 75cm fall at Uenotaira. We had only been expecting 20cm max.

This morning the sun has come out and it is a perfect blue bird day in Nozawa. The sun is most welcome and will hopefully help with the huge recovery effort in clearing the snow from the Village today.

On the slopes this is a day most people wait their whole lives for. A massive 460cm level base, over 60cm of fresh powder, the sun is shining and the slopes are empty.

If you are here enjoy it, if not I recommend you get on a plane, train or bicycle and get up here!

Current Official Snow Depths Numbers:

Yamabiko:
460cm

Uenotaira:
445cm

Nagasaka:
315cm

Current Lift operations:
All open except Hikage Gondola

Current courses open:
All open
 
Thursday 2nd February 2012, 1:11PM
Weather conditions: Snowing moderately this morning now starting to clear
New snowfall: 35cm (village); up to 30cm (up top); 40cm on Uenotaira
Snow depth: 315cm (village); 415cm (upper)
30 plus centimeters of snow once again overnight in Nozawa. It is just part of the routine now to wake up and clear a foot of snow off everything before the day begins!

Imagine waking up and the grass had grown a foot overnight - it can be hard work but snow is a lot more fun than grass!

Yesterday was pretty harsh conditions up on the mountain. Getting off the gondola at Uenotaira felt a bit like we had arrived at the base camp for a North Pole expedition. If you could get into the valleys and out of the wind and driving snow though it was pretty nice and some fresh tracks to be had on most of the less frequented runs.

The constant snow is also playing havoc with the local train from Nagano to Togari Nozawa Onsen station. It is stopped to clean snow off the lines now but should be back running this afternoon.

The forecast, believe it or not, is for a bit of sunshine amongst the snow showers over the next few days then further ahead into next week the snowatahon should continue...

Current Official Snow Depths Numbers:

Yamabiko:
415cm

Uenotaira:
400cm

Nagasaka:
315cm

Current Lift operations:
All open

Current courses open:
All open
 
Wednesday 1st February 2012, 12:10PM
Weather conditions: Snowing heavy again
New snowfall: 12cm (village); up to 23cm (up top); 12cm on Uenotaira
Snow depth: 290cm (village); 380cm (upper)
It is hard to believe that January is over and it was one of the snowiest we have had for a while. There were not many days that it did not snow in January! It looks like early February has taken over where January left off with snow cascading pretty heavily from the sky today too.

The last two years in February we have had a warm spell shoot through, I think people are kind of hoping we get it this year too. Time will tell, but at this stage it is looking like life in snow motion will continue in Nozawa.

It is cold today too, when I woke up my hot water bottle was frozen and I got an ice cream headache from just drinking the tap water! Pretty windy up high, they had to close the Nagasaka Gondola today for a few hours but it is up running again now.

On the mountain the powder party continues and guys were getting some amazing runs yesterday that will continue today as well with 20cm of fresh being recorded. The base figure is down however but may be just that the powder was blown around overnight.

Outlook is for moderate falls all day then heavy tomorrow afteroon. We may get a bit of sun Friday and Sunday but otherwise it is all snow marks on the forecast. Walk tall and carry a big shovel!

Current Official Snow Depths Numbers:

Yamabiko:
380cm

Uenotaira:
370cm

Nagasaka:
290cm

Current Lift operations:
All open

Current courses open:
All open
 
Tuesday 31st January 2012, 12:23PM
Weather conditions: Clearer skies this morning but it has just started to snow again
New snowfall: 25cm (village); up to 15cm (up top); 25cm on Uenotaira
Snow depth: 305cm (village); 410cm (upper)
Here comes the sun...

It has been a while but yesterday afternoon the sun burst on to the stage to create a magical day on the slopes and in the village.

With a 410cm base, a good overnight dump and very few crowds the stage was set for perfection. Snow conditions were excellent under foot on the groomers and up on the slopes of Yamabiko there was even a good coverage of powder that remained untouched for most of the morning.

We had some snow last night but the sun was out again this morning though things have started to cloud over once again around lunchtime.

The clearing of snow continues in the Village, the roofs are lined with people doing their best to take some of the weight off. Trucks and shovels are going hard below to take it away. A big ‘otsukaresama’ and well done to everyone in town for their efforts in the extreme conditions we have experienced.

The outlook is for more snowy days ahead. Not as heavy as was previously expected perhaps but still consistent good moderate falls for a while to come, will keep you posted.

Current Official Snow Depths Numbers:

Yamabiko:
410cm

Uenotaira:
390cm

Nagasaka:
305cm

Current Lift operations:
All open

Current courses open:
All open
 
Monday 30th January 2012, 12:43PM
Weather conditions: Was snowing heavily this morning but looks like a break now
New snowfall: 18cm (village); up to 45cm (up top); 3cm on Uenotaira
Snow depth: 310cm (village); 420cm (upper)
Hard to believe but still snowing in Nozawa and has not stopped. This is one of the most consistent runs of heavy snowfall I can remember. Who knows if it keeps up we may challenge the huge record of 530cm base set on February 5th 2006. The forecast is showing more moderate to heavy falls on the way so it may be a reality.

They have already started to dig out some of the snow below the lifts as they are becoming dangerously close to the runs below in places.

Yesterday on the mountain was another ridiculous day with more powder than a Johnson and Johnson factory! The sides of Skyline were like a natural half pipe with snow from the middle being pushed high up on the sides.

Today is even better with a lot less people to compete with for fresh tracks now that the weekend crowd has gone. The official reports are showing a massive 45cm up top but less down low may have had something to do with the gusty Antarctic type conditions last night.

There are fresh lines on offer everywhere, it is deep and mind blowing powder.

In the village now we are really praying for a break in the downpour so we can clear some of the snow before it gets dangerous. At this stage no sun on the horizon, just more snow, so for the lucky ones on the mountain strap on the powder boards and enjoy. Be careful out there.

Current Official Snow Depths Numbers:

Yamabiko:
420cm

Uenotaira:
390cm

Nagasaka:
300cm

Current Lift operations:
All open

Current courses open:
All open
 
Sunday 29th January 2012, 10:43AM
Weather conditions: Status remains the same, Snowing fairly Heavy still!
New snowfall: 37cm (village); up to 30cm (up top); 30cm on Uenotaira
Snow depth: 310cm (village); 420cm (upper)
Yet another 30cm of snow overnight has fallen and we now have a 420cm base in place with no end in sight. It is still snowing heavily this morning. I believe that gives us one of the biggest bases in Japan at the moment, certainly at a major resort. You can check snow depths from around Japan on the Snow Depth Charts in the Daily Reports section of SnowJapan.

We had a few pauses in the snow last night but they were very short lived. The battle between man and snow continues and unfortunately it is a losing one. Even if we clear the snow there is limited space to put it so most have resorted to putting it in dump trucks and dumping it down in the river.

Yesterday on the mountain there was plenty of snow and also plenty of people. This meant that some areas were getting tracked out and moguls at a fairly quick rate. Still, some amazing powder around and the sides of the runs was the safest place to explore.

Yuta and the team at Compass house are holding a demo day for Armada Skis up the top at Yamabiko today. Perfect timing and can guarantee the Fat Powder skis will be popular. It is free to demo so drop in and have a try.

With all this snow the risk of avalanches is prevalent so please observe the signs and warnings from the ski resort. It is pretty chilly up there too so stay safe and rug up.

Outlook is for light snow over the next two days apparently then a big dump on Tuesday night! I think it has already started...

Current Official Snow Depths Numbers:

Yamabiko:
420cm

Uenotaira:
410cm

Nagasaka:
310cm

Current Lift operations:
All open

Current courses open:
All open
 

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