cram400

stellar pics. absolutely stellar.

Had a great season myself. Started the season late and ended it early as my work took me away from Japan, but got to enjoy the goods during the high season.. Niseko for 9 days, hitting both the backbowls and Shiribetsu-dake near Rusutsu, did BC rours at Goryu and Tsugaike in Hakuba, and hit Shiga Kogen and Tenjindaira after massive dumps on serveral occasions each. Maybe I will hit Gassan for a little spring/summer skiing if i can get back in time.

i miss the snow.. nice coverage for mid April.. i guess that's pretty normal for hokkaido..

nice pics! thanks for sharing. what are the snow depths at gassan now?? i heard a while back that during the winter it gets up to 10m and they have to wait until the spring for the some of the base to melt off in order to open the place..

Generally speaking the SB reception is crap. I was just there in early Feb and at the top of the mountain reception was non-existent. At middle part of the mountain (around the King Bell and Ace Hill) it's still non-existent. At the base of the mountain the reception is good in the Hirafu, Niseko Village and Annupuri areas. Hanazono reception is sketchy at best. Reception cuts in and out and is very unstable.

Bravo! So how accesible are the powder runs? Skiing/Riding the pow in between the monsters are permitted, yes?

looks a lot like last season..

top of Mt. Fuji.. only place in Japan that recorded temps below freezing today, i believe..

i think every dog in the greater Tokyo area went bonkers last night.. they were all thinking "why the hell is everything freakin' white?!"

nice one, TB.. glad you got to see the potential of course B.. when the conditions are right it can be pretty good up there.

that downhill course is called Tajirisawa.. there's a "A" course and a "B" course.. when the "B" course is open one can access (er.. by ducking ropes) some relatively steep tree runs and avoid the narrow, groomed "A" course.. there really isn't much going on on the "A" course.. pretty unevenful IMHO..

nice one.. it's always fun to see snow in places that typically don't get a cover of snow.

Dumping in the Komazawa area of Tokyo too.. it's coming down at a pretty serious pace right now.

Fantastic pics and thanks for sharing, TB. Bummer on the conditons, but after a nice dump this place will bring a smile to your face. I went twice last season and stuck out both times - super icy conditions. Might as well have gone to the ice skate rink. The next time you think about going, keep an eye out on the forecast and when you see snow forecated for the Niigata/Gunma area just go.

not sure about accuracy, but all I know is that the latest forecast for February (released on Friday, Jan 29) is indeed looking good for all areas from Hokkaido all the way to Gifu in Honshu.. High probability for below average temps and above average snowfall.. If this forecast holds true this will easily be the best season Japan as a whole has had in 4-5 seasons, me thinks..

Hakuba 47 has a very nice park.. Also Alts Bandai has a superb park (for all levels of park riders).. Alts is outside your criteria area of Nagano/Niigata/Gunma, though... It's in Fukushima..

wow, seems like there were a lot of fresh lines to be had for those lucky souls who made it out there yesterday! thanks for sharing!

congrats on a stellar trip report. enjoyed it immensely

splendid pics as always, muika. thanks for sharing!

yep, the cat trail from which you drop into the trees between Ichinose and Tane no Mori are lined with those signs.. funny how they refer to the trees as "back country"..

yep, he was.. board was burried deep in the snow.. i found myself burried under the snow on few occasions that day..

Sciclone, Roscoe, your chances for good snow conditions should be good.. The higher elevation of the terrain usually keeps conditions very favorable late into the season. Tubby B, go to Shiga AND Niseko.. I did the same last seaosn.. no regrets there.. Snowjunky, use the the third pic from the bottom on the report as a treasure map.. the tree shot was taken in the trees to the top right part of the mountain in the photo.. take the quad lift located to the right side of Ichinose Family and look to your right as the lift makes its ascent.. i think you'll find what you're looking for th

thanks, guys.. tenjin was super deep that day.. i think the pic of my friend taking a snow bath captures just how much snow there was..

Arrived from Minakami late in the evening the night before. Woke up to this promising sight on the morning of Jan 16th: Couldn't quite get the make and licence plate on that car.. Couldn't get official confirmation on how much snow had fallen, but one lap of Gondola 1 at Yakebitaiyama confirmed that plenty of knee to thigh deep pokets of powder both on and off piste were there for people's shredding pleasure. In the trees of Ichinose The sun and the blue sky make an appearance in the afternoon Friends enjoying powder bliss at Terakoya

Photos from what was truly a memorable, deep, powdery day at Tenjindaira Jan 15, Early morning: Made our way north on the Kanetsu to Minakami and then on to Tenjindaira We arrive and it's official -- 80cm had fallen in less that 24 hours. It was on. Waiting for Touge Lift to open From top of Touge Lift Snow bath In the afternoon, the Tarjirisawa course opened and what a treat it was. A sequence of shots from one of several afternoon runs down Tajirisawa All in all, a fab day on the mountain. Easily the best day