Gunma Boarder
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Posts posted by Gunma Boarder
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I'm thinking about going to Kagura on Saturday morning. Haven't been yet this season and heard the romance lift is already open. Sunday will probably be my usual (Kawaba). But maybe I will go to Hodaigi or Iwakura to change things up. If these plans match up with yours, let me know
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Just been shovelling the white stuff falling from the sky. Hasnt stopped all day. I'd be guessing 40+cm.
Where are you?
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First of all I would like to thank Madarao and Snow Japan for the free lift tickets. I can honestly say I would have never gone here if it wasn't for this giveaway and it was a great trip. I left on Friday after work with my family and really enjoyed the beginning of the drive.
This first pic is Mt. Myogi from our car. Any drivers coming from Tokyo will see it on a clear day awesome mountain.
When we got to our pension there wasn't much snow on the ground but I woke up to this.
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70 cm of snow made driving to the resort a problem. I spent about 10 minutes trying to get myself out and failed miserably. Luckily the Madarao was only a 7 or 8 minute walk away so I decided to go on foot.
Saturday's visibility was pretty bad, so I left the camera in the hotel hoping Saturday would be better (and it was). Over all it was a great day. Madarao has many tree courses which are patrolled and av controlled which makes it a lot of fun. The morning was full of fresh lines through the trees. I especially liked the Riverside course which is easily accessible from the covered quad. It's a nice easy tree course which makes a great warm-up.
As the morning wore on the snow started to get a little tracked out, so I headed up the just opened double lift that goes almost to the top. As I got off I noticed a single lift, which wasn't running, that goes even higher. I rode down the hill through the bottom of powder theater and not knowing what I was doing went all the way to the bottom. After coming back up I decided to walk up to the top of the singe chair. It was a groomed walk, but still tiring. As I was catching my breath at the top of the mountain in the freezing winds I definitly started wondering to my self if all the walking was worth it. It turned out to be one of my top two runs of the day! I dropped off a step cliff through easily 500 meters of fresh powder if not more. What a rush!
After this I headed over to the Tangram to try and get even more freshies. I headed up the highest Tangram lift and rode back into Madarao and the Powder Wave 2 course. It was probably pretty good while I was hiking, but by the time I got there it was getting a little tracked out. I headed back up and noticed ski patrol was just opening an expert course on the Tangram side. I asked if it was a powder run and he said it was, but warned me that I might get stuck. It turned out to be my other favorite run of the day. I was the first non ski patrol rider to hit the course and it was epic. First a little ridgeline ride followed by a huge face drop of pure untouched powder for me, it doesn't get much better.
The rest of the day was also good. Towards the end of the day I found a fun powder drop into the Usagi course which was pretty entertaining. After this it was back to the hotel for a couple Yona Yon Ales and some Echigo gold can beers from the local liquor shop.
It continued snowing late into the night but broke before morning making Sunday one of those perfect days. The view of Mt. Myoko as I strapped into my bindings was inspiring (sorry I was to ampted to get boarding to take a pic). I hit the Riverside and Powder Wave 1 courses a couple of times then waited for the double to the top to open. I actually hoped in line with an expat from America who I rode with a good bit of the day(only kind of cutting in line, right?). As we got to the top we noticed the single to the very top was running! The view from the top did not disappoint.
After snapping some shots we dropped into Powder Theater 3 or 4 times the first 2 especially were spectacular. The trees are perfectly spaced to make it a challenge, but not too difficult. The snow was even better than the first day. Dry and fluffy heaven! Like riding a cloud to the land of fairies and elves
Here's a couple pics of the drop point.
As the day went on this area was still good, but I wanted to do some exploring. I headed over to Tangram for some runs. Looking at the Tangram trees was tempting. They were still untouched and looked o so good, but I tried to resist. Madarao views trees as wonderful playgrounds full of sunshine and rainbows, but the Tangram trees have darker souls. If you dare enter their sacred realm they will awaken dragging your lift ticket to the depths of hell. In all seriousness there were signs everywhere saying ski patrol would take your lift ticket if they spot you in the trees.
During this part of the day I was riding single and another rider hoped on the lower Tangram lift with me. There were a few lines in the trees and he said they were his. Long story short he talked me into riding the trees with him. It was an amazing run probably a kilometer of untouched beautiful powder that left me wanting more, but sure enough while we were riding the lift up we noticed ski patrol waiting at the bottom of the trees. I decided to quit while I was ahead. I headed back into Madarao and called it a day.
I just really liked this sign (and the view behind it). That's me with Mt. Myoko in the background.
This is a pic from down the road, you can see the resort at the top.
It was a beautiful ride home. nice views of the surrounded mountains as well as the north alps. I snapped one more picture of Mt. Myogi during sunset. Really is my favorite mountain for hiking in Japan.
Overall a great resort and a great trip!
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Just for a counter argument, if you stay in Narita check out Narita san (the temple). I have been to many and it remains one of my favorite in Japan. The street leading up to it is also worth the walk. Only problem is the fastest trains from Tokyo leave from the airport, not the city. There is a free bus from the airport to many hotels and to Narita station (not to be confused with the airport). The price range has been pretty good for me, but I book using the Japanese version of Jalan.
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OK. It turned to rain here now. It was a good run though
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Raining.
really? what elevation are you at? I'm only at 300m and the trees are turning white! What a difference a mountain range can make.
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If you do go to Shiga Kogen check out the snow monkies.
http://www.snowjapan.com/e/features/snow-monkeys-of-jigokudani.html
Well worth the trip. There is also a wonderful onsen (hot spring) town called Shibu Onsen (渋温泉）just below the monkey onsen. I stayed there last March and it was a wonderful experience! There are 15 baths around town that you can try and it has a very nice small town Japanese feel. It is just below Shiga Kogen. It might make a good break from skiing day mid trip.
I have also heard Nozawa Onsen is nice.
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The weather forcast for where I live (near Numata, Gunma) was for rain, but it has been snowing all morning. Maybe not the driest stuff I have ever seen, but should provide a nice base for the drier flakes that will be falling in the next few days.
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I'm very impressed by you sir. Looks like a fun board
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snows started outside my school right now. Nice big fat flakes. But thats beside the point. This WEEKEND is going to be awesome. Well, aside the wind <cough> id check your local weather report on that one.
But tomorrow is going to kill it and sunday should still have fresh lines due to the wind blowing it all back again. Today is the start of the good times, but id give it a few hours to start working proper.The part about the wind is the definition of positive thinking. Everone have fun out there!
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Just wondering what people are up to this weekend. I just booked a hotel for Saturday night near Madaro and will be riding form early Saturday through midday Sunday. Looks like we have some snow coming, so I am hoping for some crazy powder
If anyone else is in the area let me know! -
That Kagura photo looks amazing! Now I'm kicking myself for not going. Went to Tenjin on Saturday to avoid the crowds but the bottom run was closed due to av danger which really limits the place. Still had a nice time jumping off a short cliff face and racing by climbers most of the day. Went to Kawaba (my regular) on Monday managed to find plenty of untouched snow to ride. Wasn't as deep as Tenjin, but the powder was great in some places. Looking forward to next weekend! Probably will be heading over to Madarao to use the tickets I won (thank you Snow Japan!) If anyone is planning to go let me know!
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I will definitely be following your advice. All day snow here in Gunma and it doesn't look like it's stopping. I will be at Tenjin bright and early
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Myoko Kogen
Tohoku resorts like Geto Kogen in Iwate
Hachimantai Akita....haven't actually been to these two but I've heard good things about Geto.
Hakkoda up in Aomori....not really a resort....2 runs down, but everything else is there for the taking if you are experienced enough and know what you are doing.
Shiga Kogen gets great snow......numbers aren't as high as perhaps Hakuba or Niseko but due to its height it gets great quality.
Kagura in Yuzawa (Niigata).....gets great snow
Tenjindaira in Gunma.......awesome snow but to really enjoy it you need to know what you are doing. The resort itself is pretty dull, but there are lots of side/slack lines that lead back to (the worlds slowest) gondola
Nozawa Onsen gets good snow
You do realise that there is more than 1 resort on Hokkaido as well.
I second this
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It looks like it snowing pretty hard on the Gunma mountains. I'm sure Yuzawa is getting some good snow too.
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I don't know if I should laugh or cry.
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Nishi-Hotakadake.
lol. Yes! I love the google earth usage. It is infact the Shin-Hotaka ropeway and the peak is Nishi-Hotaka. I really recomend this area. Not for riding, but for pure beauty.
Over to you Metabo Oyaji
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Photo hint. You are guessing the mountain in the first picture. The rest is just to help speed things along. The pictures are from a trip taken shortly after the big quake. It was my way of getting away from the stress of my whole family telling me to come home immediately! I stayed at a beautiful mountain Ryokan in a wonderful onsen village.
Now remember this is not a Skijo.... This is where the hiking starts.
This is the view from the ridge below the peak in the first picture.
This pic is from the small peak on the far right of the main peak in the first pic.
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The view was Gran, but it was not Granview. No correct answers yet.
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Hint
could a hint take the form of another photo from the same place? It probably would help.
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Kurobegorō-dake
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no correct answers yet
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Said top lift at Kagura opened last Friday, as reported on the Naeba Now reports:
Good to know. I still probably won't go this weekend due to the crowds, but that does make it more tempting.
SnowJapan Giveaways - 10 Hakuba Norikura Onsen (Nagano) lift tickets
in Snow talk, trip reports, Japan avalanche & backcountry
Posted
If you win this ticket can you pay 500 yen and get a dual pass with Cortina?