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Im not worried about soub starting a beef.

 

To anyone I have been on SnowJapan since 2001. My first name was the BCbum actaully. At that time SJ was just growing and the forums had only a few names most of which are gone.

 

I was here when NoFakie aka MR.wiggles decided to up his life and move to Hakuba. I was here when Ocean upped out of Suwa and parked his bum in Shikoku. I was here when deebee aka db aka le spud first started to snowboard with Danz, Ryno, Barok and a few other of the orginal crew. I dont think that this gives me a right to post what I want at all though so let me explain my point.

 

I have always said that Hakuba is the big mountain area of Japan. Only Gunma really comes close. I let people stay with me back when I rented hotels here. I got people to stay in my crappy apartment when I rented that here. All through that time I never once thought that I was going to move to Hakuba really that was a dream. Mr. wiggles had a lot to do with pushing that dream forward. Sitting in his kitchen hearing about how much prices had droped really opened up my eyes. Then a friend bought an unbelievable house and I knew we had to jump at a dream.

 

Now what am i supposed to do. I have pushed Takasu and Hakuba for years because that is what I love. This is what I want to talk about. In a sense that is who FT is on this forum. You rarely see me chatting off topic or in other threads cause Im a skier. I want to talk about skiing and I want to talk about the places I like best. If I can no longer do it then what is the point of being FT on the board anymore. That is my struggle these days and trust me I get a fair share of slack for somethings I used to be able to do.

 

This person asked for big skiing near Tokyo and my best advice is Hakuba. It wouldve been Hakuba 6 to 7 years ago as well whether I have an interest or not.

 

I love SJ. Sj is a big reason why Im still in Japan. That said if I cant be FT then ill retire from forums and support it in another way, cause it is not in my interests or SJs interests to have to talk about something like this.

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I don't have a lodge in Hakuba but I will still suggest it.

 

Why is Aomori a bad idea at this point? Well, you are going to be living there and all those resorts, Hachimantai etc are going to be within striking distance. This is your chance to really check out Hakuba. If you start working do you really think you're going rush down to Hakuba for a weekend? Things will be tighter for sure.

 

I lived in Whistler for 2 years so if you want something big like that then hit Hakuba. Happo One is the closest to Whistler but about 1/4 the size and no parks. but the pow certainly stays around longer than whistler!

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Have to agree with Fattwins on this one. He is pushing the resort - not specifically his lodge. There are plenty up there to choose from.

 

When in Hakuba, if the snow's good and you have time, don't forget the smaller resorts as well. We have had some epic sessions at Sun Alpina (by Aokiko) and its connecting resorts. Much less crowded that Goryu / 47 / Happo on a weekend and depending on the weather the snow can be just as powdery.

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Fattwins, sorry no-one responded to this - we all seemed to have missed this one buried deep in code as we have been all week.

 

Please don't let the situation ever make you feel like not posting - just keep on as you have posted until now for all these years. I certainly think that the Forums benefit from your posts. And know that you are conscious of not pushing your lodge on here. \:\)

 

Fattwins knows this but if anyone goes over the line as far as trying to push their businesses or whatever, we do let them know. The whole situation gets noticeably harder for us each year because there are more and more people involved, more people wanting to promote themselves and there is a lot more 'politics'.

 

Fattwins saying that Hakuba is an excellent place - as he has done for a long time - sure doesn't come under that header.

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Let me just add to that. I agree with SJF. We have no problems with the way you post, and of course hope you will continue to for a long time.

 

There just happens to be a fair few more people of late who use the Forums and now living/working in Hakuba - one of the premier ski towns of Japan. Unavoidable to talk about it and personally I hope they talk about it more. People in other areas should talk about them more too. People in Hakuba shouldn't be afraid of posting things about Hakuba, same with any town or area. I can't see anyone unfairly promoting themselves here, so... there is no problem.

 

And thanks for the comments about the site, Fattwins. Hearing something like that makes a long day of coding and copy/pasting almost worth it. ;\)

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Here's another chime for HAKUBA.

 

I lived in Colorado for four years if you are coming straight from Whistler, you won't be disappointed with Hakuba. You'll have all the time you want to get to Hakkoda, etc. in Tohoku.

 

Tanigawa-dake in Gunma is one of Japan's highest-served lifts at 1945 meters. But it's a pain to get to w/o wheels.

 

Go to Hakuba, drool, and then see the Hakuba mountains in your dreams forever and ever.

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I have. And its a great area.

 

The 'problem' with Tohoku is that the resorts are spread out and transportation is certainly not easy for newcomers. And the resorts are just on a different scale. Places like Hakuba have a number of good choices all within easy reach of each other.

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 Originally Posted By: soubriquet
Fair enough. I've never been to Hakuba, hoping to rectify that this winter. I don't doubt it's the best place in Japan to ski, and I don't claim that anywhere in Tohoku competes. But it is still worth consideration.


Tohoku is defitnely worth a consideration, one place I would love to visit is Zao.
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Soub it isnt that Tohoku isnt good. There are places that I want to go to up there for sure. It is about advice to a person that wants to ski somewhere before they make the big move to Tohoku. Once he/she is up there they will be like you, mayba only make one other trip outside of Tohoku.

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AS the OP, I wanted to thanks everyone for their inputs and their time.

 

I wanted to add a few things to explain why Im 'avoiding" going more North for my first trip..(glad to see people so interested in that, figured it would be a dead post or I would get flamed)..

 

First, like I’ve said I’m moving to Japan , so my mentality and the baggage Ill be carrying isn’t the same as if I was on holiday. Plus, in the 6 weeks before Ill backpacking through Europe with a week in Whistler starting off my holidays..

 

So saying that, I need something logistically easy.. I want to land, get on a train, take a nap ... get to my hotel and hit the powder the next day. Being that Tohoku is more the "boonies" , I imagine that there might be some more steps to take...

I'll be living in Tokoku for at least 4 years, so I'll probably have time for that..

 

 

 

Side question since people are reading this: I’ve gotten the feeling that Hakkoda in Aomori has some great skiing/boarding but it seems to be more BC and not so much standard trails? Is this true? I wasn’t planning on bringing my transponder or avi gear, maybe I should?

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