Slippery Jim

Looks like Hodaka to me.

Opt for the Okushiga Kogen Hotel

a pea, just keep in mind... youth & enthusiasm are no match for experience & treachery!

we'll be at Hotel Scot; most of the crew sat-tues, four of us sat-wed. we're on first flight/bus, so probably get there around noon. i'm easy to spot in orange/brown jacket & orange hat on the snow, or with the 500ml Classic in-hand at the hotel's rotenburo. PM for a phone link.

Emilia, coming up saturday with a crew of 30, ranging from 5 to 60 and from beginner to advanced (don't think we've got anyone i'd call expert) Happy to have you join us for some runs

That's just what I was thinking, Mike. Haven't been to Kamui for quite a while now and I think it's time to revisit.

It shuts in January? Thanks for the answers Mike & Blade. Just ran across it on the Yahoo weather page and thought it looked like it might be worth a side trip sometime. Seems to have about 700m of vertical.

Anyone been to this ski area? Any opinions, good or bad? Info on the runs? snow? trees? etc.

Just keep it pumping down til 1/5, Mike, if you please.

Hi Skier1, glad to see you're out there enjoying the snow.

I was up at 6:15, dressed & coffee'd by 6:30, skis & boots in-hand -- and then the damn shinkansen signal system fubar'd! So now I'm on my 5th cup of coffee, have read everything on the Net worth reading (and much that wasn't) about baseball and am still trying to figure out Plan B for the rest of today.

Yep, Hakuba sounds like your best bet. You should still check the travel agencies; they're usually pretty good at finding cheap places to stay, or just check the websites of some of the Hakuba resorts on Snow Japan for accommodations help. Powder in mid-December? decent chance at least. Have fun.

Gordon, Hakuba will be your best bet from the Osaka/Kyoto area, but you can't get there directly from Takayama in winter -- the mountain pass is closed. You can get direct trains, or overnight bus if you're on a really tight budget, or take the Bullet Train (yes, they're very fast) to Nagoya and change for regular express trains there. You could do Niseko on a not-too-expensive package tour, but you must book at least 10 days in advance. Overnight trains go to Hokkaido from Tokyo, but not from Osaka, and you'd still face a 2.5-3 hour bus trip. Easiest thing will be to find a JTB or Ki

I'll be interested in hearing what you think once you've skied on them; there's a good deal available on older ARVs/bindings at a shop I know and I'm tempted.

Sharp looking boards and a good price break. What's the waist and flex?

I'd rather ski at Nozawa, but the percentages say somewhat better odds for good snow at Shiga. In the end, it all boils down to luck anyway; will it dump on the days when you're there...

1. Hakone isn't ski country. I suspect you mean Hakuba up in Nagano. 2. That weekend 1/2-3 is sure to be pretty crowded anywhere; you'd be much better off (as far as skiing goes) to spend it in Tokyo then take the train up to Nagano on Sunday evening to ski for a couple of days. 3. Narita-Tokyo-Nagano can be done in 3 hours roughly. From Nagano Station you can catch buses to Hakuba/Shiba/Nozawa, 1 to 1.5 hours. 4. If you're really interested in both Hakone and skiing, you have two very different aims. Spend the weekend in Hakone, then head to Nagano on Sunday evening or Monday a.m.

At 156cm, I'd suggest something between 150 and 165 (although your weight has a lot to say here; that's for average weight/height). For a not-so-useful comparison, I'm 187cm and I think my skis should range from 175 (stiff groomed runs) to maybe 190 (deep powder). Hope that gives you an idea to work from.

Some guys just have very BIG hands, I guess. Either that or...nevermind.

12,000 from Narita? That's a bargain! Take it.

Last shinkansen (bullet train) for Nagano leaves Tokyo Station at 2204 on a Friday night. If you know your way around Tokyo Station, and you're not packing too much gear, you can easily make the connection in 15 minutes; if you have lots of gear and don't know the station, I'd say allow at least 30 mins. That means arriving Tokyo NLT 2135, but let's say you're really fast and can make the transfer by arriving Tokyo at 2147 on the Narita Express 50, leaving the airport at 2053. That gives you roughly 80 minutes to get through immigration/baggage/customs, buy train tickets and get to the platfor

I read that Rhythm & Beats will open a Furano branch this season. If it's equal to their Niseko shop it'll have top-class gear.

Rock on, Ma Nature!!

What about the various natural indicators of what kind of winter it will be: density of moss, height of sassa grass, bug population, preying mantis eggs, etc. Anybody conversant and observant?

I'd doubt they have anything very good. Stayed at that hotel a few years ago; comfortable enough but nothing special and I don't recall seeing any rental shop. They'll certainly have stuff, but probably older, beat-up & low intermediate level at best.