sivartmac

How is the drive on the 120 from the Numata IC to Oze? Is it as harrowing and vertical as the drive to Kawaba can be? I was surprised at the drive up to Kawaba last year in rather benign spring conditions, and I'm not sure I'd attempt it in poor conditions even with the snow tires I recently had fitted. We went to Houdaigi a few weekends ago - nice compact little resort, and the drive wasn't bad at all.

Hmmm.. I didn't realize the Kan-Etsu was so notorious. I appreciate the head's up!

Great write-up, Oyaji-san. I also went to Naeba for the first time a few weeks ago, and I find that my experience and thoughts largely echo yours. It really does require a few moments to take in the view when pulling into the parking lot for the first time! Could you or anyone else possibly enlighten me about the Kan-Etsu and its troublespots? I've made the journey on it to the Yuzawa area a good half-dozen times or so, and I don't recall anything particularly noteworthy about it other than the occasional queue on the drive back to Tokyo on a Saturday evening. Cheers!

Thank you for the replies, guys - very, very much appreciated!

Please bear with the n00b question here from someone who has just this season discovered the joys of snowboarding with his 2 young sons… We had planned to head to Yuzawa this upcoming weekend, mostly because it’s a relatively short drive from where we live in western Tokyo, but I’m somewhat dismayed to read that it’s supposed to get so warm later in the week. As this is our first season doing any kind of snowboarding/skiing and we've been lucky with our half-dozen trips so far condition-wise, what should we expect in warmish conditions? I’m guessing the base layer will still be there, bu