Mantas

thats cause sj data isnt official and is written by tour companies Fattwins, interesting comment. Im going to Hakuba for the first time next year and I'm also going to Niseko. I'd like to know where you can find some acurate data on the whole snowfall/ quality thing so I can show my Niseko mad mates what I've always suspected.

more curious than anything else snosurf. i'm suprised no one has ever heard of it or been on it or anything. Travel agents around here are about as handy as a choclate teapot ! Half of them wouldn't even know you could ski in Japan.

I tell ya this cat really exists I saw it mentioned again today in a JAL ski tour brochure. Surely someone knows something about it !!

Jungfraujoch Switzerland 3454m in summer 1989. A piss ant little slope for tourists, but technically i still skied. Does that count ?

snosurf how do you know the cat wasn't an Aussie ? Was it drunk ? Thursday , it's definately a multi wheelled snow cat machine type thing .!

the cat would move a bit fasterthan me up a hill. get more runs in. I reckon that cat wasn't friendly at all. just freezing it's arse off and used you for wamth !

oh well sounded like a good thing. Not really that familiar with the lame brittish ski package tour seen !If anyone hears that it does really exist can u let me know.

the site has changed a bit. but the photo is there if you flick through the gallery http://www.inghams.co.uk/ski/JAP/RST/index.html

why do you think this ? i can't find any info on it. i saw it advertised on an English web site ,complete with a photo of a very small cat with wheels. It said 35pounds for the whole cat. It looked lke it would only take a few people. like to know more.

Ahh so it does exist. whatelse do you know Fattwins ?

Des anyone know about a cat operator at Rusutsu ? Apparently you can take a cat up the hill before the lifts open ???????

Ok Ok Let me clear this up. I apprieciate your concerns ,and they are well founded. We have plenty of people die here in Aust. too from avalanches. I have been boarding for 15 years. in Autralia, New Zealand, USA Canada, (east and west) Scotland and Japan. Almost all of it on groomed runs and some off piste. The little bit of " Back country ' I have done has been with professional guides , group avalanche training and becons attached. As I said. I'm no hero and never take risks. I would not dream of going anywhere that I didn't know the way out or what was down there

well done Toque

yes kumapix, i was wearing a beacon, something i leart during my 15 years of boarding, maybe it does matter how long!

i recon i know whats safe and what's not. I've been snowboarding since 1991 without incident. I'm no hero and I don't take unnesserary risks. In april I went B.C. in B.C.(brittish columbia) with a guide. Theres no way I'd think of going there without a guide. Sometimes on a lifted hill I do go "off the course" usually following someone elses tracks.

Mate the food and the women are enough to make you go to Argentina or Chile, let alone the snow. I didn't ski there but spent some time in both countries

Centainly getting some feed back on the dangers. I haven't done much backcountry without a guide before , have to look into getting set up. Surely you can go a little off the courses without worrying about becons and avalungs ect. How easy would it be to find a guide for the day once you get there.

Thank for all the info guys. Not sure what to do now. Not really set up for B.C. better invest in a guide me thinks.

yes Chop as they say ' fortune favours the brave ' . Neseko is an awesome mountain no doubt, but I won't be going back there this season.

Niseko reminds me of Kuta Bali in the eighties. Aussies took over the place and where too scared to venture into other areas for years.

I'm spending some time boarding around the Furano area next season and would like to know if anyone has been to Kurodake or Asihdake and let me know which place they think is better. Also would it be better to stay in Furano and do day trips or stay at Sounkyo. How far is it from Furano to Sounkyo anyway ??

Yer i think I'd like to give it a go . It would be nice to get away from the Aussie hordes at Niseko. Sometimes it's nice to sacrifice some on quality just to enjoy something different. Last year one of the best days i had was at Moiwa. Shorter flater runs but no crowds at all !! Freshhies all day. Whats the go with the Cat ? Does it take you from the top of the lift to even higher up or what ?

Has anyone been cat skiing at Niseko Wiess ? If u have please tell me what the go is. The web site is a bit sketchy.