Mike Pow
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Posts posted by Mike Pow
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Awesome snow Mike
Which chair is that one and also the run Nerys is on is that a groomer?
All off the Center Express chair.
Nerys' vid
First clip is skier's right of the 'Center A' red course skiing the ungroomed area underneath the Kiroro Gondola.
Second clip is the ungroomed marked black run 'Center C'. The run we call 'Loveocks'.
Third and fourth clips skiing the ungroomed area underneath the Center Express chair. Had to watch we didn't hit the chairs as we skied down.
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DAY 99 : THURSDAY 06 MARCH 2014
4 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
Day 17 of the Royal Visit
Kiroro Snow World was the place to be today.
Despite the gondola being offline all day due to high winds, there was plenty of powder on and off the groomed runs and very few people sharing it.
Nerys really got a handle on skiing waist deep powder on steeper pitches today, letting the skis run and the platform develop under her skis.
Nerys Waist Deep
I got in on the act too and Jarch is shaping up very nicely with 74 cm (29") at MQ in the first 6 days of the month and 26 cm (10") waiting for us when we got back around 7pm yesterday evening.
Jarch
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26 cm at MQ in the past 4 hrs.
DUMPING.
Kiroro was waist deep today.
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DAY 98 : WEDNESDAY 05 MARCH 2014
19 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
Day 16 of the Royal Visit
Rusutsu was fabulous today.
Nerys & I warmed up on the low angle boot top powder under and around the East Quad and East Tignes run before lapping the knee deep powder under the Isola Gondola and the trees off the Isola Grand run.
The temperature rose sharply after lunch thickening the powder but the turns underneath the Isola No. 2 Quad were smooth and consistent.
We finished the day back on the East Quad and the East No. 2 Gondola.
For dinner we went to Restaurant La villa Lupicia in the St. Moritz area of Hirafu and chose the degustation menu at JPY 6,500 a head.
Amuse-bouche
Pate, brandade
First Appetizer
Assorted appetizers of seafood and vegetables
Second Appetizer
For Nerys
Oysters
For me
Spicy grilled Hokkaido venison fillet
Main Dish
For Nerys
Steamed menme rockfish and glutinous rice wrapped with shaved kelp - dressed with clear lily bulb "dashi" soup
For me
Roasted breaded lamb with Apple & Ginger sauce
Dessert
Gianduja Souffle glace crispy sandwich (hazelnut & chocolate)
and cheese platter
Wonderful setting, ambiance, service and food.
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How are we doing on total season snowfall Mike?
12.27 m to date at MQ in Higashiyama.
March mean is 1.55 m for the eight seasons I've been collecting data.
So on track for a normal winter in my opinion.
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Cheers onehunga and seemore.
Yep.
"Discogalactic" the remix of "Intergalactic" by The Beastie Boys with
"Oh What a Night" by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons and "You Sexy Thing" by Hot Chocolate
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DAY 97 : TUESDAY 04 MARCH 2014
4 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
Day 15 of the Royal Visit
Nerys and I headed to Kiroro Snow World for the first time in week, and what a difference.
Winter has returned.
Boot top to knee deep powder all over the mountain on a consistent base made for a great day.
Discogalactic
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"Expert Run" off the double chair
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DAY 96 : MONDAY 03 MARCH 2014
11 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
As of today 12.04 m (474") has fallen at MQ in Higashiyama
Day 14 of the Royal Visit
Well the snow arrived sooner than expected or forecast.
2 cm forecasted up top, 11 cm on the ground at village level this morning and a massive change at Niseko Moiwa in 24 hrs.
Shin deep snow and the crunch disappearing by the run.
Comeback Story
Light snow has been falling throughout the day and more is forecast overnight.
It's getting better by the day.
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DAY 93 : FRIDAY 28 FEBRUARY 2014
2 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
February saw 231 cm (91") of snowfall, the 2nd lowest total in the eight winters I've been collecting data.
The highest total was in February 2013 when 395 cm (156") fell.
Day 11 of the Royal Visit
Nerys & I took a day off snow today.
High winds kept most of the lifts closed for most of the day, so we headed to Kutchan for a bit of shopping, coffee & cake at Sprout cafe, and a visit to the Kutchan Natural History Museum and the Shu Ogawara Museum of Art.
Shu Ogawara (1911-2002) was born in Kutchan and is a well respected artist in Japan.
Along with his paintings there is a visting exhibition of international artists called Kutchan Art 2014 which runs until 23 March 2014.
Both are well worth a visit.
In the evening, Nerys and I joined Ian for an excellent dinner at Dragon Restaurant in the Sekka building in Hirafu.
We shared the appetiser selection of seafood, pate, and rillettes; oysters on the half shell and oyster shots; and the salmon and scallop sashimi.
Nerys had the fish main course, Ian had the duck, and I had the lamb chop. All delicious.
The service was great, the atmosphere relaxed, and dining here is highly recommended.
DAY 94 : SATURDAY 01 MARCH 2014
0 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
Day 12 of the Royal Visit
Happy St. David's Day (Patron Saint of Wales).
A grey day at village level with gusting winds, so Nerys & I took another day off snow today.
DAY 95 : SUNDAY 02 MARCH 2014
0 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
Day 13 of the Royal Visit
After a week of no new snow, glorious sunshine, and freeze-thaw conditions across the Niseko Resort Area, colder temperatures and light snowfall returned this morning.
Nerys & I headed to Niseko Moiwa where the groomed runs were hard packed, consistent, and great fun on narrower profile skis.
The 2-5 cm that fell during the day made the turns on Shirakaba slope surprisingly good.
A layer of velvet like snow covered the sun and wind baked off piste slopes and a lighter touch resulted in smooth turns top to bottom.
The mercury is set to drop all next week and snowfall is forecast for the next six days, with Thursday 06 March looking like the pick of the days at this stage.
Get ready, winter's not done just yet.
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Cheers seemore.
See below.
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Loved it. Will definitely return. Thinking of getting the K-Pass next winter.
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DAY 92 : THURSDAY 27 FEBRUARY 2014
0 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
Day 10 of the Royal Visit
Another glorious day and another new resort for both Nerys and me.
Today's destination was Sapporo Teine, the 1972 Winter Olympics resort overlooking the city of Sapporo.
We drove up to the Highland Zone and started our day on the 4-seater chair that takes you to the top of the mountain.
The views were superb.
We worked our way from City View Cruise to City View Panorama to Natural to the Men's / Women's Slalom run from the '72 Games.
The grooming was excellent and the slopes were quiet.
Nerys was getting more and more comfortable and much more relaxed on steeper grooomed terrain.
And Teine is consistently the steepest resort in this part of Hokkaido.
After lunch we headed to the Olympia Zone, which is an amazing area to learn and develop your skiing.
On our way down the 'Natural' run we came across a Sapporo Police Dept. police car stuck in the snow.
The policemen had taken a wrong turn out of the car park and headed down the groomed run instead of the mountain road.
I dug them out once and we managed to push them a little way back up the run, but then they sank again and had to wait for the groomer to pull them out.
Nerys in the Olympia Zone kid's area
The ferris wheel in the Amusement Park
Nerys skiing the Olympia and Highland Zones
[VIDEO]
[/VIDEO]The current snow conditions kept us to the groomed terrain today, but Teine has an abundance of open bowl and tree skiing at all pitches that would be superb in powder.
The Niseko Resort Area is often criticised for not having steep terrain to complement it's plentiful powder.
After visiting some of the Otaru and Sapporo resorts this week, my recommendation for those looking to ski deep AND STEEP on Hokkaido would be to base yourself in Asari, Otaru or Sapporo and day trip to
Kiroro Snow World
Otaru Tenguyama
Sapporo Kokusai
Sapporo Teine
and a number of the smaller ski areas nearby.
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Great write up. I was right there with you
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DAY 90 : TUESDAY 25 FEBRUARY 2014
0 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
Day 8 of the Royal Visit
Still no new snow falling from the bluebird skies so Nerys and I headed to Kiroro Snow World for more chalky snow on the groomed runs and boot top to knee deep spongy powder on the sheltered north facing slopes.
A relaxing, mellow day of skiing with no crowds and quiet slopes.
DAY 91 : WEDNESDAY 26 FEBRUARY 2014
0 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
Day 9 of the Royal Visit
The "drought" continues!!!
So today's destination, a new one for both of us, was Otaru Tenguyama.
As we left MQ in Higashiyama we saw pilot Kenji Sato of MPG Sorachi motor paragliding on the Black Diamond snow field.
Looks like great fun.
After a lovely drive over the mountains and down to Otaru City we took the steep approach road up to Otaru Tenguyama.
The ski resort is small but perfectly formed with beginners' areas at the bottom and the top of the mountain, one long green run from top to bottom, a couple of steep (tops out at 38 degrees) pisted red runs, and a couple of unpisted steep (tops out at 42 degrees) black runs.
And then there's all the stuff in the trees that drops right back to the bottom of the hill.
The pisted runs were in perfect condition with grippy corduroy, and the ungroomed terrain was a mix of packed powder, sun crusted powder and boot top heavy powder.
Uplift is by a 30-person ropeway or by a 2-person uncovered chair.
With my Niseko United seasons pass I got a day ticket for JPY 2,000 and Nerys got a 6-hr ticket for JPY 2,300
Nerys on the ropeway with Otaru bay in the background
The terrain
Nerys on the green 'C' course with Otaru bay in the background
Dropping into the red 'F' course, at 38 degrees at the top Nerys's steepest run to date
and cruising out at the bottom
And back up for more
We had lunch at Restaurant Tengu which commands a wonderful panoramic view over Otaru
and after lunch visited the Tengu House which houses Tengu goblin masks from all over Japan.
Legend has it that the Tengu goblin has the magical power to grant wishes and protect people from harm.
and the Otaru Ski Archives museum
The view from the Observatory Deck
Otaru Tenguyama is a fantastic little resort and one which I will definitely return to. Especially on a powder day.
Come Sail Away
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DAY 89 : MONDAY 24 FEBRUARY 2014
0 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
Day 7 of the Royal Visit
Glorious sunny weather across the region and no new snow for two days meant heading into the backcountry or heading out of the Niseko Resort Area to find untracked, soft snow conditions.
Nerys & I chose the latter, with Sapporo Kokusai our destination for the day. This was Nerys' first visit.
As we drove through Kimobetsu we heard the distinctive sound of helicopter rotor blades 'thwapping' overhead and saw the Hokkaido Backcountry Club dropping off skiers on the summit of Shiribetsu Dake.
Superb day for it.
Shiribetsu Dake
I've been eyeing this line for a while. This could be the winter for it
Sapporo Kokusai was deserted with fantastic chalky snow on the groomed runs and boot top to knee deep powder on the sheltered north facing slopes.
And great views of the ocean.
The camera was playing up again today.
One that got away
Nerys
On the way back we stopped to watch the fisherman ice fishing on Jyonzankei dam
and had an early dinner at Fukuro no Mori. Great pasta & pizza in front of the wood burning fire.
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DAY 88 : SUNDAY 23 FEBRUARY 2014
2 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
Day 6 of the Royal Visit
Nerys and I took a day off snow today and headed to the Kutchan Yukitopia festival at Asahigaoka Park.
It was a great afternoon with a real family day out atmosphere.
There were food stalls selling deicious local food - oysters, pumpkin croquettes, tako yaki (octopus fritters) and Kutchan's own fried potatoes.
Japanese Superhero shows on the main stage with mock battles.
And a children's tubing hill.
The main event was the sprint across the water. Fastest across wins. Cash money.
Some made it, some didn't. Hats off to all though, that water was cold.
Jon Barlow walks on water
Going for extra style points
Sumo
One of the organising committee
Nerys
Eye of the Tiger
His prey
Jagata-kun (the Kutchan town ski mascot)
Unlucky
If you're in the area next year it's definitely worth a couple of hours off snow to attend.
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DAY 87 : SATURDAY 22 FEBRUARY 2014
23 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
Day 5 of the Royal Visit
Another load of snow at MQ accompanied by sunny skies, so it was back to Niseko Moiwa for Nerys and me.
A little warmer than yesterday which made the powder a little heavier but another fabulous day.
Nerys and Mt Yotei
Nerys in the powder
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Cheers seemore, will pass that on
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Great snow in that vid seemore.
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DAY 86 : FRIDAY 21 FEBRUARY 2014
26 cm in the past 24hrs at MQ
Day 4 of the Royal Visit
Buckets full of dry, light powder outside my door so it was the short 'commute' to Niseko Moiwa for Nerys and me today.
Sunshine and the deepest snow Nerys has skied to date.
Fantastic day.
Move It
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Thanks seemore and tokabochi.
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Go to Sapporo Kokusai instead.
Cracking day there today, with plenty of powder stashes to be had.
SR : HokkaidOH! 2013/14
in Snow talk, trip reports, Japan avalanche & backcountry
Posted
Hope you get the goods.
Most lifts closed in the Niseko Resort Area today. Windy as a windy thing