Tsuruta (Aomori prefecture)

[Boris 0]

Hello everybody,

I will be spending few month in Tsuruta and I am looking for a nearby ski resort that has good freeride options and steep slopes. Which one would you recommend? are the "good" ones more expensive?

sorry if this question was already asked. So far i haven't found any information about skiing in Aomori

 

Boris

[SnowJapan 178]

Hello Boris

 

Here is our Aomori listings page:

 

http://www.snowjapan.com/e/resorts/atozlisting1.php?prefecture=Aomori

[tsondaboy 0]

Never been to Aomori, but you might wanna check Hakkoda.

[Fattwins 0]

Hakkoda is not steep Tsu he asked for steep.

[muikabochi 208]

You are doomed Boris.

 

With some exceptions, most ski resorts in this country are pretty much the same cost in terms of lift tickets.

[tsondaboy 0]

He also asked about good freeride options and thats probably the best option in Aomori. Unfortunately you cant have both.

[Fattwins 0]

I wouldnt call hakkoda a freeriding resort either

[tsondaboy 0]

So can you recommend something better in Aomori?

 

I will be heading up to Hakkoda myself this season.

[Fattwins 0]

I would recommend not skiing in Aomori and looking elsewhere in the area.

 

Hakkoda is not steep and if you dont know the mountain it is boring.

The term free riding is used mainly for wide open terrain. Not dense 20 degree tree riding. The touring around Hakkoda is also considered some of the most dangerous and unpredictable in Japan.

[tsondaboy 0]

Elsewhere in the area, like?

Stop being vague and help a bit.

[Fattwins 0]

Im not being vague, im being honest.

If hachimantai was still open I would say there is your freeriding place. There is Getou for better terrain and huge snowfall. Shizukushi maybe shows promise but it is short like getou and only averages 6 to 7meters of snowfall. Then there is Zao but it is a hard resort to understand.

[tsondaboy 0]

Dude, all the places you recommend are great, simply great.

All of them together with Hakkoda are listed in the places I wanna visit this season on my Tohoku trip. One small detail though, have you got any idea how far they are from Tsuruï½”a?

[Fattwins 0]

No idea but Hakkoda does not interest me you are going to walk in lots of deep snow after flat skiing.

[tsondaboy 0]

I ll take my chances, thanks for the warning.

[JA2340 16]

Originally Posted By: Fattwins

Shizukushi ... only averages 6 to 7meters of snowfall.

FT, There are some of us, like aussies, who'd welcome 7metres of snowfall in any one of our resorts!! I understand what you are saying, but having skiied on 25cm of cover (in between rock hopping and grass avoiding) I cannot help feeling sad for people who "only" get 7m!

[Fattwins 0]

7 meters of snowfall means that your season could be short.

7meters is on the high end of the reported snow in the area.

This also means that offpiste will have less snowcover. This means that the answer to the question is, that if you want to freeride in powder how much snow the place get does matter.

[Boris 0]

So in resume there's Getou, Shizukushi and Zao.

But none of them are in the listing given by the SJforum person up there. Are there in Aomori prefecture?

Someone told me about the Naqua Shirakami very close to Tsuruta but i think it is not really steep.

[Fattwins 0]

You are not going to a place with much alpine terrain.

You need to drive a few hours to get to somewhere good

[NoFakie 45]

I never knew Hachimantai had closed.

From the guidebook, it looked like the best one up there.

[Fattwins 0]

The web says closed if it is still open please do tell.

[NoFakie 45]

No you're right, it looks like it closed last season. I just hadn't heard.

 

To complicate things further, it sounds like its on public land with a licence that was due to expire earlier this year.

[Fattwins 0]

Sled heaven maybe!

[snowboard 0]

Shame that place closed. There are many more places that are more 'worthy' of closing if you get my drift.

[Amos in Utsunomia 0]

I liked it there too. But just not enough people going.

 

You're in a nice area, but don't expect huge mountains. But enough to enjoy though. Make sure you do.

[tsondaboy 0]

Originally Posted By: Boris

So in resume there's Getou, Shizukushi and Zao.
But none of them are in the listing given by the SJforum person up there. Are there in Aomori prefecture?
Someone told me about the Naqua Shirakami very close to Tsuruta but i think it is not really steep.

Shizukuishi and Getou-kougen are in Iwate prefecture, about 200 km and 250 km drive respectively, from where you are. Zao is even souther, in Yamagata prefecture about 450 km drive.

In Aomori your only realistic option is Hakkoda, which is not a bad place to be, check some of the resort reviews about it. It is about 35 km drive from where you are and I would not be surprised if there is a bus leaving from Tsuruta. If you are restricted to public transport only, then it would be actually cheaper to take the train to Hokkaido than go to Iwate.