Two Aussies, Two Weeks And One Mountain by Drew Richardson (snowboard_freak on the Forums)

When my osteopath told me he was going snowboarding in Japan I thought he was pulling my leg, either that or he had gone a bit crazy. Then he started telling me about the quality and quantity of the snow that Japan gets each and every season. Little did I know that this was to be the introduction to some of the best days snowboarding I have ever experienced.

I had been thinking of going away on a snowboarding trip and up until I spoke to my osteopath my obvious choice was going to be Canada. All this talk of waist deep powder had me intrigued, so I decided to do some research.

I searched the Internet for more information about Japan and the snow industry. I was amazed at the shear quantity of resorts in Japan. Every source I found stated that there were over 600 resorts in Japan, some even saying over 700. Several areas/resorts seemed to be the most popular. Among these was Niseko on the northern island of Hokkaido. I focused on finding about more about Niseko as it seemed to have a reputation for having consistent light, dry powder. I read a lot of reviews from a lot of different sources on the Internet. I joined a forum (the name of which escapes me) that was very quiet and slow. One of the administrators of that forum referred me to “Ski Japan Guide” (as Snow Japan was known as back then). This was definitely one of the best sources of information that I came across. After searching through the information that the site contained I decided it was time to book.

We (s_f_g/sam on the SJ Forums and myself) booked through STA Travel who booked the snow part of our trip through SkiMax. However, we later discovered that it would have been cheaper if we went through Snowave. We booked two weeks in Niseko and five days in Tokyo on the way back. Ideally we wanted to have it the other way around but date constraints and full flights prevented us from this.

One of my old mates from high school, Ross DuVernet, came into work just after we had booked our trip. I mentioned that we were headed for Japan to snowboard and found out that he had spent a month in Niseko in February 2002. Later we sat down and Ross showed me his photos from his trip. I looked on in total awe, thinking that I too would soon be experiencing such magnificent snow. It was at this point when I really started buzzing about the trip. Ross was kind enough to share some of his secrets with me about where to find some of the best snow and lines, but he did keep some to himself as well, as most people do. He also offered some general advice on what to take and where to visit in the small town of Niseko. This information complimented the information that s_f_g/sam and myself got from the online community at Snow Japan.

Both s_f_g/sam and myself asked every little question (well almost every question) that came to mind, from where to get the best electronic goods to what sized snowboard to take. We got some very useful information from the community at Snow Japan. After a couple of weeks posting on the Forums both s_f_g/sam and myself found ourselves hooked on it. Getting involved in the Snow Japan community helped us to count down the days until the big trip.

We were flying with JAL from Sydney with an overnight stop in Osaka. When you fly from Australia to Japan it isn’t possible to get to Niseko in the same day as the flights for Sapporo (on the island of Hokkaido) leave in the morning.

Our flight from Sydney left at 12:45pm. I was anxious (I’m a terrible flyer!) but incredibly excited as well. I took two Valium’s and the anxiety just melted away and I was left with the excitement that I was about experience another country and some awesome snow. Although the anxiety did rise for a moment when a fighter jet flew past our plane early on during the flight.

Nine hours, four valiums and a bad movie later we arrived in Osaka. We were put up in the Hotel Nikko at Kansai Airport. This was the nicest accommodation that we had while in Japan. It had a toilet that was like something out of “The Jetsons” and a section of the mirror that was heated so that it didn’t fog up. Amazing. I want one of those toilets.

Out first eating experience in Japan was McDonalds - sad isn’t it? But hey it was getting late and we were tired! We went to bed at about 11pm ready for the next leg of our trip that would take us to Chitose Airport in Sapporo.

Our flight departed Osaka at 10:40am. The flight is only short one, taking a little bit of an over an hour. The scenery on the way to Sapporo is stunning. Out of the left side of the aircraft you could see the snow covered peaks of the mainland. There were a lot of Australians on the plane, most of which were looking out of the windows at the snow. Everyone was stoked and was going for one reason………POWDER!

I was not expecting Sapporo to be covered in snow, but it was. Snow just seems to make the scenery around you much more beautiful and serene. We had a forty-minute wait for the bus that would take us to Niseko. The final leg of the trip.
  

Snow covered Sapporo

  
The bus trip was about two hours. The scenery is stunning and there are some good photo opportunities. Peter Murphy from Snowave was our guide on the bus and gave us some good information about where to find what in the town of Niseko and told us what snow related services we could use and where they were located. The lift passes were also handed out while on the bus as was a trail map and a map of the town that had the locations of some restaurants, lodges, bars and other points of interest. These were all of great assistance.

We got to the town of Niseko at around 3:30 or 4pm. So if you want you can go for a night ride after you have checked in and set up all your gear. We opted not to so that we could get our boards set up properly and have a walk around town to get acquainted with the local hot spots that our trusty map had on it. Seico Mart will be your lifeline for cheapish food, drinks and snacks. It is just opposite the Snowave lodge in the centre of town.

We were staying in Lodge Uranaka. It is owned and run by a Japanese couple. They speak a little English and are incredibly nice and will go out of their way to help you. One of the people we were staying with snapped one of the straps on his bindings at about 6pm. The husband offered to drive him into Kutchan (a local town about 8km away) so that he could get it fixed. Very nice people. They even came to our room one night and gave us a huge bag of fresh peanuts! The style of most of the rooms are what I would call “traditional but modern Japanese”. You sleep on a futon and bathe in an onsen (public bath). For breakfast you have the choice of the traditional Japanese breakfast or a western breakfast. Behind the lodge there is actually a lift and it is not even a five minute walk to the Centre Four lift from which you can access the rest of the mountain with ease.
  

  
The snow in Japan is awesome. In the two weeks we were in Niseko there were only two days that it didn’t snow. The snow is light and dry and there is always somewhere to find fresh tracks. Not one day went by when I didn’t put some nice fresh turns and it isn’t hard to find untracked snow.

If you have never boarded or skied in powder before, get ready for a totally different style of riding. In Australia I was used to very average snow with only a couple of “powder” days under my belt. Well, I called them powder days before I went to Japan. Powder in Australia is nowhere near as light and dry as it is in Japan and the deepest I had experienced was about ankle deep. In Japan I experienced waist deep powder and was blown away. It took a while to get used to but after that…… wow! I’m hooked. The feeling of floating through waist deep powder, gliding in between trees is just amazing. It feels totally soulful and is the very essence of snowboarding for me. No other people in sight, just you and the mountain.
  

Not quite waist deep

  
Night riding in Niseko is gangbusters! It is completely different to the ice runs of Front Valley at Perisher Blue. The dimly lit Alpen Supercourse with fresh snow is a fantastic run that really got my blood pumping. Riding through trees at night time is even more of a challenge than it is during the day. Night riding is an absolute must, if your legs can handle more powder turns that is.
 

Night time at Niseko

 
Japan is great place to learn new tricks and allows you a better opportunity to ride harder than you normally would, especially if you are coming from Australia. My advice is to go big while you are in Japan or you will come back and regret it. The landings from the natural jumps are very soft and forgiving because of the quantity of soft snow. I had some monumental crashes and did not really hurt myself. Going end over end in a couple of feet of snow does not hurt at all. Although it can be hard to find your googles and beanie after such a stack.

The lifts in Niseko are great. No T-bars or J-bars!! There are a couple of short rope tows that take you up a small incline. The other lifts are all chairlifts and there is one gondola. Some of the chairlifts are even hooded which is fantastic when the weather is harsh. Just watch your noggin when the hood comes down, it hurts when you get smacked on the back of the head! The gondola can get a bit busy on the weekends but there is always somewhere to go to escape the crowds. In general there are no lift lines. I mean none. You can literally finish a run and go straight through the gates and onto a lift. When there are lines they tend to go quite quickly because of the magnetic lift passes that they use. You strap the pass to your left arm, under your jacket, then place your arm against the gates, they swing open and away you go.
  

The peak at Niseko on a gorgeous clear day

  
Japan has a very different culture and way of life to anything else that you would have or will experience. The Japanese people are very friendly and are always keen to practice their English on you. Get ready for a lot of noodle slurping and naked beer drinking in the onsen with complete strangers. There is plenty of “exotic” food in Japan so come over with and open mind. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole Japan experience because it was very different. s_f_g/sam on the other hand suffered from some initial culture shock but was fine after a couple of days.
  

Mt Yotei and the big thermometer

Here are just some general tips and advice that I found useful.

All in all it was a great trip. The snow was like nothing I have ever experienced. I am now hooked on powder and will be definitely be back next season, but for longer.