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This will be my first time skiing in Japan (Niseko) after having heard and reading stories of amazing powder. However, I haven't heard very much about people carrying transceivers, shovels and probes when skiing off-piste in Niseko.

 

My question is; are there not many avalanches in Niseko?

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It has.

 

Yes.

 

I had lunch at King Bell today and sat next to an Aussie Family on ski's - I was interested and got chatting to them because one young man had the battery powered insole heaters that Thursday told me about yesterday - talk about fortuitous!

 

The same family were carrying beacons, and had backpacks which I suspect contained all the avie stuff they might need. They were heading out to Strawberry Fields, and love the back country - so they came prepared.

 

If you are going out of bounds then bring the gear.

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Would you say that there is more than enough powder sliding to be had "in-bounds" in Niseko which I suppose is technically on-piste as opposed to off-piste where we would find most of the powder sliding in Europe?

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Depends on the day, the time of day and your expectations doesn't it.

 

I have been knee deep doing first tracks on inbound ungroomed runs over the past few days. New stuff has been falling all day long and there are lovely stashes to be found all over the place.

 

But I have not got the skill to ride the kind of deep stuff you need a snorkel for - so maybe the inbounds isn't enough for you...

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Peeps, please be aware. Super course is inbounds. It closes when there is a chance of a slide. Patrol are right on the case.

 

I've said this before and I'll say it again, Niseko patrol are on the spot when it matters. There was a (woman) boarder, ducked a rope when the announcements said that Super is closed 'cos of danger' She got a shout fest in the face. I like that. She left pronto.

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Hornster I have been skiing here for 5 seasons and almost entirely ski off-piste and out through the gates to the peak and bowls. I have never and probably will never carry avie gear with me.

 

I'm not saying you shouldn't and if it makes you feel more comfortable by all means do carry it. It's just with over 20 years skiing experience (much of it backcountry) and my local knowledge I take a considered risk when I head out. This area gets very, very few avalanches. In the last five seasons (some of them huge snowfall years) I have only ever seen one avalanche that carried a boarder about 20m downslope and it was very shallow and not really that dangerous. The only big ones I've seen have been in late spring when full thinkness slabs can pull away from the slope. So with this in mind I have decided that the risk is generally minimal and I probably have far more risk of injury driving to and from work each day.

 

The only avalanches that have claimed lives in Niseko have occured in areas that are currently totally blocked off to skiers. The gates accessing the peak and bowls are closed when avalanche danger is very high. Generally a bit of common sense and knowledge will keep you safe enough here.

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If Niseko had high avie risk then we'd be hearing stories all the time about people getting caught in them. Can you find one thread about someone getting buried in an avie here over the last few years?

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 Originally Posted By: Go Native
If Niseko had high avie risk then we'd be hearing stories all the time about people getting caught in them. Can you find one thread about someone getting buried in an avie here over the last few years?


thats cuz its not steep enough to have avies ;\) :p
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not up on the peak samurai there are no trees up the top 1/3 of it and the rest of the trees are quite disperse compared with other resorts. I know youre quite competent but just because youre in trees doesnt mean it wont slide either, right? Trees at Niseko are more like a huge open meadow as I could ski a bus through Hanazono no problem. But as GN pointed out the Supercourse has slid before and so have the back bowls.

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There are many reasons why we don't get many avalanches here. There is very little area above treeline and the ridges off the peak have realatively low cornice build-up. The temps up high remain well below freezing for pretty much the whole winter and there are very few clear days or nights. Couple that with few slopes greater than 35 degrees and you have an area that has very few avalanches regardless of the large amount of snow we receive.

Of course they can and do happen and it is only a matter of time before someone does get hit by one again but this is just part of the risk we take to enjoy powder. I for one am not going to spend a whole lot of money on avie gear in an area where the risk is minimal. As I said before I think the biggest risk I take everyday is driving to work. The main cause of injuries and deaths here on the slopes is people coming into contact with trees.

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FT, are we talking inbounds or out of bounds....if out of bounds then it wont be up to the Patrol as they would have no jurisdication.

If just inbounds how are they making incorrect judgments?

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