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hats off to you, MP.. that's some spectacular stuff!

that looks more like the "yuki guni" scene i'm used to seeing in the yuzawa area!

go to Hakuba.. close enough for a two day trip from Tokyo, plus opportunity to ride back country terrain with guides.. not sure if guide services are available in English, though..

the phone box looks a lot better than it did at any time last season..

can't wait til i make it up there!

love the blue/white contrast you get with the sky and snow.. what awesome day to be out on the slopes!

stunning pics, fellas!

crappy music or the sounds of interviews.. both are dreadful choices.. whatever happened to just enjoying the natural sounds of mountain? Japanese resorts in general have terrible music playing over the loud speakers, but GALA takes it to another level in terms of piss poor music selection.. actually, it's not even music, it's audio pollution..

that's more like it!

Originally Posted By: muikabochi Well, I'm not sure. It's still on the forecast - though tuned down from what the forecast was 24 hours ago - but somehow it feels like we've passed the peak for this snowfall. I am probably talking utter rubbish, and hope I am! nice.. well, i will be drinking to the first big snowfall of the season and hoping for more!

more dump porn!! thanks for sharing, muika. more snow should be headed your way tonight and tomorrow, right?

you're gonna need a snorkel with an extension on it!! WICKED!

i think with the addition of the Niseko dump porn photos this thread officially gets a XXX rating..

that's some serious dump porn in Hakuba

not a "weatherhead" but based on what i learnd in "weather & climate" class in college and an explanation on tenki.jp "satoyuki" occurs when winds collide over a given geographic location thereby creating a shearline. The colliding winds create updraft, and when mixed with cold air precip falls heavily in the form of snow.. http://tenki.jp/forecaster/diary/detail-1644.html The surface weather map for the morning of the 17th (see above link) shows a "bulb" in the pressure gradient lines over the Sea of Japan.. pressure gradient lines are an indication of wind flow direction, so th

The beginning.. how exciting!

weather forecats indicate that the best is yet to come, especially for the moutains of Honshu.. talk about starting off with a bang!

superb! hope we get a nice "base" around that phone booth by the weekend!

yep! some very cold air set to move into japan next week! even JMA predicting below average or average temps for 2nd half of december to mid Jan..

footage comes from the nimbus crew, no? alot more footage on their website (nimbus independent).. "en route" and "hunting yeti" series are superb.. i think some of the footage from en route made it onto contrast..

last season the first major "dump" in a lot of places especially in honshu started on x'mas day and continued into the 27th.. so if last year is any indication the colder, snow inducing weather should be on its way!

so what are the non-Niseko areas that are featured in the footage? Teine? Kiroro? Kokusai?

Yes, for helmets.

now i think it's safe to say that the season's started. Fab pics!

beautiful pics from afar the top of ishiuchi maruyama almost looks rideable/skiable!! although in reality i'm sure it'll be a little while longer..