deemacvee

Belated thanks for your response. Thanks for the tips. I will investigate them. We won't have a car. I have been looking at Tazawako (Akita) too. Looks fun for a couple of days. Anyone have any feedback on that one? Cheers

Hi All, Heading to Hirosaki and Yokote to catch the winter festivals. Any recommendations for good mountains in Aomori/Yokote would be appreciated. Senior skiiers. Comfortable cruising more our style these days. Just being lazy as I start to research - any tips/recommendations greatly appreciated. Cheers Deemacvee

Though she was too young, too frail to handle it. Then she had her accident with the tanker on the way to the start in Sydney. I thought her parents were irresponsible and feared it would end in tragedy. I have followed her trip every step of the way http://www.jessicawatson.com.au/ and will be there on Saturday to wave her home, eat my words and applaud her remarkable feat. Never judge a book........

For me, returning after a few years gap was like going back to Bali. Somewhat disappointing. It's a matter of preference, but I preferred it quieter, less crowded and more "Japanese". Not-withstanding, the pow and dining/drinking options abound, but it's probably more of an attraction for the younger crowd. I'll keep on trying new places. Have not been disappointed yet & have a long list to get to before the knees pack in for good.

If it's resolved, It's back on the itinerary (sorry) I emailed the Myoko info & they advised that the matter is still "in dispute". Something to do with revenue sharing arrangements. The All Mountain pass excludes Akakura Onsen. Only the season pass cover all 4 areas. It looks great - glad to hear someone else confirm it.

Maybe the bumper season meant that people didn't have to travel for 20mins or so from Echigo to Kagura to get good snow? They could just hit the resorts in town. I found Kagura pretty empty in mid Feb (not complaining!) but Naeba was like - who disturbed the ants nest? - buzzing!

Actually re-thinking Myoko at this point. I'm reading that the lift ticket dispute between Akakura Onsen and Akakura Kanko is a bit of a nuisance. Might put it off for a year until they (hopefully) get their acts together. (Voting with my skis?) Have been having pleasant dreams about Hakuba lately .......... I try and go somewhere different every year, but I think I have unfinished business there. I can arrange a bus to do Hakuba / Noz for the fire festival. Thanks for the advice peeps.

Yeah. I might try some of the tour companies that do the Zen Koji - Obuse - Snow monkey trip & see if they will do a run to Noz and back for the fire festival. Could be lucrative for them. (if they can fine a park) Getting there the long way is fine, but after a big day / night, it's a long trip home.

Thanks for the advice. There is going to be a load of us - several families. We've all been to Noz before but not seen the fire festival, so I was trying to work out if a day (& home late) trip was feasible. There's probably enough of us to book a whole bus. One of the group lives in Narita. I'll put him on the case - rent a bus (& sober driver) Cheers

Howdy, I have been trying to find the best way to get between Myoko and Nozawa, by a more direct route than train down via Nagano. I have not been able to track down a bus service that links the two resorts. Thought I'd tap your collective wisdom. Many thanks for any help Cheers

Ski in / ski out (or short walk in bloody ski boots) Onsen, onsen, onsen Wi-fi

We were in Sapporo & Otaru last month for the snow festivals. Sapporo didn't disappoint, but the more folksy Otaru snow gleaming really won us over. 2nd the motion regarding the Otaru Beer brewery. In a Japanese town with a bit of a Russian influence doing Bavarian Beer Hall (quite well, I might add).... we'll... you just need a few drinks to cope. The seafood, especially crab, is abumdant. Not to mention, there is a pretty reasonable ski resort called Kiroro about a 40min bus ride from Otaru station. Got a good dose of Hokkaido pow there and some good runs.

Thanks for the link. WE've had it on the list of places to visit for a few years, not really to ski but for the "cultural" part of our annual pilgrimages north. The mountain is a bonus and it looks pretty good. We are hitting some of the lesser known mountains this year but I like to know what's ahead. A bumper season and another nice mountain - it's all (ways) good. Cheers >>> Kampai DMcV

Fantastic. I've been all over that site & missed it. Thanks very much!

Heading to Kusatsu in a couple of weeks and have been trying, without success, to find a piste map on the web. Can anyone point me in the right direction? Many thanks