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29th March 2002
Must confess to having taken my motorbike out of storage yesterday. A
quick dust down, and the motorcycle gods decided the timing was right.
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CLICK
HERE TO VIEW NISEKO-HIRAFU SNOW DEPTHS FROM '97 to '02
Only a slight squeeze of the starter button and the engine
fired to life straight away. For the next month, mornings and evenings will
require caution (frozen patches are most unfriendly on two wheels). But tucked
away inside the warmth of snowboard gear, spring touring is fantastic.
Last season motorbike fun didn't start until the latter half of April -
three weeks later than this year. Gaining the extra road time is great (we do
pay for twelve months of rego, despite only riding for six). But how has the
ski season suffered?
Niseko-Hirafu season 2002 has been erratic. Despite pre-opening murmurs of a
warm winter approaching, December kicked in early with good continuous powder.
Temperatures were cold and the snow base quickly jumped to two meters. Powder
heaven continued all month and even New Year crowds were treated to knee-deep
freshies (the New Year holiday period as a rule tends to be a dry time in
Niseko).
In January it continued to snow. It went powder-less for a while, then it
snowed again. With all looking set for another two months of bottomless powder,
it then decided to rain. When an approaching low front lingers just to the west
of us, warm winds are sucked up from the south and a touch of rain is not
unheard of. Although being a rare occurrence - once or twice a season in
January, usually around midday - there can be a spit of rain before it quickly
turns to snow. This time it was different. Rain fell solidly all night and
continued into the following day.
Melting history was written for January when forty plus cm of base
disappeared overnight. Within twenty-four hours the temperature jumped from
minus 15 to plus 3 C, playing havoc with the snow and concerning avalanche
experts.
The month of February brought more powder smiles, but mild weather persisted
with too much sunshine. From a filming point of view, this season has been
fantastic. Day after day of bluebird - unheard of in Niseko for Jan/Feb. Powder
quality has been a little heavy, but the visibility magical. Skiers and
boarders staying here during peak season often complain that the sun doesn't
come out, or that they never get to see Mt Yotei. This year Yotei has stood
beckoning to all.
Amongst the glorious powder and sunshine of February, unwelcome rain fell
once again, drenching the mountain and confusing locals. Compared to last
season when the temperature didn't rise above minus 10 C for five weeks
straight, rain in February was quite a shock. Again the snow base took a
pounding. At one stage in February we had two meters less base than at the same
time last year. This lack of snow base was actually kind of fun at the time.
Similar to conditions early on in the season, when the base is shallow,
features of the natural terrain are prominent. This means lots of natural hits
and drops. Usually by Jan/Feb the base is four to five meters deep and most
contours are 'smoothed over'.
The negative side to having a shallow base is of course that it disappears
too quickly towards the end of the season - mid to late April conditions look
grim this year.
CLICK
HERE TO VIEW NISEKO-HIRAFU SNOW DEPTHS FROM '97 to '02
This season's weather fluctuations created unstable snow conditions which
resulted in a number of avalanches in and outside of resort boundaries. Luckily
no one has died so far, but a number of people have had close calls. One
impressive story concerns a group of snowboarders who were filming a European
television documentary on Niseko. They were caught out when hiking for a shot
on the western side of the Alpen ridge. The group claims someone cut the snow
directly above them setting off a small slide. The cameraman was standing
behind a tree when the slide let loose. He managed to cling on, saving his
camera equipment and himself. The two hiking riders were carried down the slope
around ten metres before also being able to catch hold of a tree. No one was
hurt, but three snowboards now lie waiting to be collected this summer
somewhere towards the bottom of the hill. I wonder if they will include their
avalanche adventure in the documentary...
Despite rain, yellow sand storms from China and melting snow, season 2002
has been a fantastic one. The clear weather and the introduction of 'Niseko's
Local Rules' has seen more and more people skiing backcountry. Everyone appears
to be learning as they go, and having a great time. Here's to a safe finish to
2002, and to looking forward to a powdery 2003 season. It's only a few months
away. Off to give my bike an oil change.
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