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agillgren

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Everything posted by agillgren

  1. agillgren
    We tend to get around to a few resorts-- so now a days we just buy on the day wherever we have decided to be so we don't waste pre-bought tickets. Never more than a 2 min wait at the ticket counter (with that said in Niseko we started the day at Hanazono and not Hirafu which may be busier) so didn't find it inconvenient. What I can say is that all the large places take credit card-- and I don't remember there being any merchant fees added.
  2. agillgren
    Of course that pretty much applies to everywhere. Yes-- but everything is relative. Although fresh snow is always good some places don't make the most of it - ie don't have good lines, or trees are too tight, or ski patrol will chase you for ducking ropes to get to the goods or it's tracked out in a few hours. At Tomamu there are some fun off-piste runs - nicely spaced trees, good pitch and not too many others to share with. Plus it's all "ski patrol" approved and consequently managed to a certain extent. However it does get snow less often than further west-- so timing is probably
  3. agillgren
    Time this place right and it is good fun. We've been lucky twice - well the second time was planned luck as we decided to head there the day before. There are a few pensions and also a small kwikemart (not next to the pensions) within a 5-10 min drive that are a cheaper option to the resort. And the pension we stayed at did offer transport to train/ski slopes if needed.
  4. agillgren
    Can't comment on the ski touring--- but if you stay around Asahikawa you could easily do both/all… bout an 1 hour drive to Asahidake and Kurodake from there. Obviously this requires a car, but you'd have a lot more to do in the evening (e.g. restaurant choice) if that's important to you. There isn't a whole lot at the base of Asahidake. A few onsen hotels is about it. There is a bit more at the base or Kurodake - but again it's pretty much all onsen hotel and a seico mart.
  5. agillgren
    Thanks for the vid Mike. Only snow I can get right now is vicariously.
  6. agillgren
    How did you manage to land on top of a tree? Mine are normally a result of nose diving into the deeper snow.... which makes for a nice and soft landing. Worst part is normally trying to stand up again. Ah..... fond memories. I miss snow - especially as it's 38deg here today.
  7. agillgren
    That's gold. I've done similar myself a few times (too heavy on the front foot). Enjoy the fresh snow. Very jealous.
  8. agillgren
    Damn. I think anywhere within one hour of the big N is now going to be heading that way . Will be good business running buses/tours…. But I'm sure there will always be empty places for those willing to find it.
  9. agillgren
    All give and take… this site has helped a lot with the trip planning. I love the map resort search function.
  10. agillgren
    Bus to the other side (maybe hanazono) would be the go. Probably empty there.
  11. agillgren
    No problem everyone. In summary…. we visited 9 resorts and had 10 days on the slopes. We stayed at 6 different hotels - with only the first one Niseko way pre-booked. We covered about 2000km in total - but mostly sunny weather made for easy driving on our long days. Didn't find the driving bad at all-- but probably did OD on 7/11 type food (mmmm pork buns). For us the car is definitely the way to go. Was fun re-visiting some old favourites as well as exploring new places. Nice to change it up between staying at ski-jo and in cities too. All up another very fun t
  12. agillgren
    Windhold lockdown. Yuck!
  13. agillgren
    15/2/14. No new snow overnight so we decided to check out Otaru Tenguyama. It's literally on the edge of town and offers great views back over the city and ocean. It has some decent pitch too. Probably some of the steeper "courses" I've seen in Hokkiado. But alas not that long with only around 450m vertical. The place is definitely more laid of for skiers but we got around OK. Being a bit lower they didn't have as much of the previous days snow we found at Kokosai, and it was a bit heavier. But hey--- still had easy fresh lines (maybe boot deep) on the sides of the runs the day afte
  14. agillgren
    Never thought there could be too much snow. Good stories…. but glad it wasn't me on that bus! I'm grumpy as anything if I don't get food.
  15. agillgren
    We also had no problem finding hotels on the day of or day before in most places too. If we wanted to change area (eg. Tomamu way/ Otaru etc). We'd normally decide the day before if we were going to change area and book online or call ahead before we left so we didn't have to stress after a days riding. Only place that was a little tricky was Kutchan where I had to do some ringing around. But still- found somewhere the night before (and a sat night too) for 12000 for two people. The cities also make for a fun change. Plenty of dining options and site seeing to add to the trip.
  16. agillgren
    We've had a car and been willing to use it. It definatlely let us make the most of what snow did fall with fresh lines to be found on nearly all our days. But it's probably not for everyone- we dont mind driving. We also counter the cost by staying in towns or small hotels away from the lifts and not fancy places at the resorts. I don't think we could go back to being based in one spot. I'd feel too hemmed in.
  17. agillgren
    WV. Photos are in my trip report thread.
  18. agillgren
    13/2/14 After two full days off the snow for me (gosh that was hard) my knee was getting better so decided to head south to the forecast snow and hope. Well at least I figured I cold bend it enough to get binding done up so worth a try. Left Sounkyo in it's glorious sunshine. By the time we reached Sapporo two hours later the snow was starting to set in. It did feel weird driving straight though Asahikawa. I do have a soft spot for Kamui and Pippu - but at that stage the area didn't look like it had fresh snow for a while so we gave it a miss. We arrived at Teine just after lun
  19. agillgren
    12/2/14 Official sight seeing day - and a beautiful calm sunny day to boot. I have to admit to being slightly sceptical about what to expect. I didn't want to get my hopes up. But we were booked onto Aurora to see the drift ice in Abashiri. After being herded in in an orderly manner (man there were a lot of Japanese tourist buses) we boarded and were away. We reached the thinner ice - and I thought that was pretty cool but you could still see the thicker stuff in the distance. Once into the thicker stuff they slow down and travel in a big U-turn. The vastness is pretty impressive. No ic
  20. agillgren
    Deeeeep day at Sapporo Kokosai. Easily mid thigh in places. Deepest day of the trip for sure.
  21. agillgren
    Concur. Thanks for the tip Goz. I hadn't heard of it and it was well worth the drive.
  22. agillgren
    We went on the Aurora to see the drift ice. To be honest it was better than I expected - pretty cool (No pun intended). Then a sightseeing trip up kurodake (the ropeway was running but not the chair). Then Sounkyo spa ice fall festival. I preferred this to the sapproro festival. The natural formations are more interesting to me than a sculpture of a cartoon character. I'll post more detail and some pics when I have better internet But-- the knee is back in action now. We'll I can bend it enough to do bindings up:). So we are in Otaru and on the hunt for snow again. Fun day
  23. agillgren
    Tiene got 5-10 this arvo and was snowing heavily when we left.
  24. agillgren
    Will do.
  25. agillgren
    11/2/14 I'm out of action… but I'm not mean enough to stop the other half from having fun. Today we slowly made our way east to Abashiri for sightseeing… but of course stopped to check a local resort on the way. The drive itself was lovely on a very clear day. We had views of the whole range -- here's a pic of Sohoro in the distance (at least I'm pretty sure it is… so many mountains) We even had a close encounter with some wildlife (but I don't think this fox was that wild) Then we arrived at Nukabira Gensenkyo. Wow- big place for a local hill. Highest lifted point was

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