thursday 1 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 unfortunately this will change each hour, but if you look now, it's that line down the hill Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 Shite...that IS a white ribbon of death! About as skinny as one of the runs home in Zermatt - what is that - one single board width?...well...mayb two... Link to post Share on other sites
muikabochi 208 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 Should have seen the one they had at Ishiuchi Maruyama towards the end a few weeks ago. Makes that look wide Link to post Share on other sites
Mike Pow 52 Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 Friday 24 April 2009 Grand Hirafu, Niseko Resort Area 0cm in the past 24hrs at MQ Not strictly true. It got cold again and snowed but nothing settled. Beautiful, crisp, sunny Spring morning and off to Kiroro to see if they can manage their snow better than the amateurs at Hirafu. The answer, a resounding YES Not a patch of brown to be seen on the groomed runs and most of the off-groomed was still skiable. Great grooming on which to compare the three skis we demoed today: Rossignol Radical Alpha Ti (124-70-112) Head Supershape (121-66-108) Atomic D2 Race SL (123-67-108) All great skis, but the Atomics win hands down. Just confirmed what Ian and I felt the first time we demoed them at the start of the month. Popped off the groomed and found 5cm of velvet powder on top of a creamy spring base. Fabulous. Not all the lifts are running on week days but this was reflected in the JPY 2,300 ticket for 3 hrs of superb spring skiing. Ian M skiing beside the waterfall that's appeared in the spring melt (not one of my better efforts) Link to post Share on other sites
Mike Pow 52 Posted April 26, 2009 Share Posted April 26, 2009 Saturday 25 April and Sunday 26 April 2009 Grand Hirafu, Niseko Resort Area 0cm in this time period at MQ But it's been snowing since 11am and it's sticking. Wet in the village, but hopefully some legit pow up top. Tomorrow will be 6 months since I first clicked in for the season. It was a bluebird powder day way back in late October, fingers crossed for the same tomorrow Link to post Share on other sites
Hokkaidough 4 Posted April 27, 2009 Share Posted April 27, 2009 Just love that latest one Link to post Share on other sites
thursday 1 Posted April 27, 2009 Share Posted April 27, 2009 it's gone all white again. Link to post Share on other sites
Go Native 70 Posted April 27, 2009 Share Posted April 27, 2009 Not defending the poor grooming practices at Niseko but you can't really compare the cover in Hirafu and Kiroro and just blame the differences on grooming. Kiroro's base is quite a bit higher and has a more northerly aspect than the slopes in Hirafu. Agreed though Mike, the grooming here really is amateurish. Link to post Share on other sites
Mike Pow 52 Posted April 27, 2009 Share Posted April 27, 2009 There are many factors, not least of which is the pitch of the run in to the lifts. Much steeper in Hirafu over Kiroro. This alone would ensure less wear and tear. But, and it's a very big BUT, as soon as you expose a patch of grass / dirt / sasa to the sun it spreads like a cancer. And it is irreversible. Hirafu chooses to move the remaining snow cover on the home run into the 'white ribbon of death' and expose the sides to the spring sunshine. This is madness. Link to post Share on other sites
gerard 6 Posted April 27, 2009 Share Posted April 27, 2009 OK, so did you guys get a dump or what? Link to post Share on other sites
Mike Pow 52 Posted April 27, 2009 Share Posted April 27, 2009 Yes. As my mother always says to me: "Patience is a virtue, Acquire it if you can. It's seldom found in women, and never found in this man" Today's words and pics up soon. Link to post Share on other sites
Mike Pow 52 Posted April 28, 2009 Share Posted April 28, 2009 Monday 27 April 2009 Grand Hirafu, Niseko Resort Area 4cm in the past 24 hrs at MQ Woke to clearish skies, a coating at MQ, and the promise of pow Glen and I drove to the base of the Ace Quad to find that it was the only lift running in Hirafu. The higher lifts were on hold and scheduled to run. Sometime. Maybe never So we got back in the car and drove to Kiroro instead. Fortune favours the brave. A foot of fresh in the car park, nobody on the hill and JPY 2,800 for a 5-hour ticket. All the lifts we needed were running and there was heaps of legit, knee deep, light pow to play in. Just Glen and I out playing, so a jabonk fest as far as the pics go And then the sun started to come in and out. Tempting us. We drove out of the car park under clear skies and through tracked, unmelted snow. The stars are out, the air has cooled. Hirafu or Kiroro tomorrow? I'll sleep on it. Link to post Share on other sites
bellavista 0 Posted April 28, 2009 Share Posted April 28, 2009 Those last two are some of the prettiest photographs you're likely to see. Thanks... Jealous...but really pleased that someone is there getting it. Link to post Share on other sites
merryJim 1 Posted April 28, 2009 Share Posted April 28, 2009 Wonderful Link to post Share on other sites
yoroshiku onegai shimasu 2 Posted May 1, 2009 Author Share Posted May 1, 2009 Ooops missed those last ones - still looking remarkably good! Link to post Share on other sites
inned muppet 0 Posted May 3, 2009 Share Posted May 3, 2009 Classic thread, Many thanks kind sirs Link to post Share on other sites
Mike Pow 52 Posted May 3, 2009 Share Posted May 3, 2009 Thanks all. One more post to come (from last Tuesday). Link to post Share on other sites
Mike Pow 52 Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 Tuesday 28 April 2009 Grand Hirafu, Niseko Resort Area 0cm in the past 24 hrs at MQ The upper lifts didn't open at Hirafu on Monday, but even with the possibility of untracked snow up high I returned to Kiroro. This time in the company of Ben, Jeff and Oli from NPC. There was still plenty of snow in the car park on our arrival but it was pretty evident that the warmth of the previous afternoon had congealed the pow. The first pitch off the gondola was dry and light with about 10cm of penetration. But the lower we dropped the slower it became and the groomer back to the base of the gondola was a pole, skate and scooter suffer fest. With limited opportunity to get freshies the boys decided to go airborne. Ben Jeff Oli On the road back home the Niseko Resort Area made an appearance. Iwaonupuri is the peak in the centre (to the right of Mt An'nupuri) and Niseko Weiss is far right. Writing this report on Sunday afternoon in an apartment in Manhattan, New York and Tuesday turned out to be my last day of the season on Hokkaido. A great way to call it quits Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 Great work Mike. I, for one, have really appreciated you bringing us the Niseko POW tempters all season - been magical! So whats the plan for you now? Gonna be back next season? Link to post Share on other sites
Mike Pow 52 Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 Thanks. Really enjoyed it. New York for the summer and hopefully S America in late August for some Chile powder (and Argentinian pow too) Back to The Land of My father's in September before heading back to Hokkaido for the autumnal colour show and another winter nip deep Link to post Share on other sites
SKI 15 Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 Great stuff. Looking forward to next season already. Link to post Share on other sites
SnowJapan Admin SnowJapan 178 Posted May 4, 2009 SnowJapan Admin Share Posted May 4, 2009 Yes Mike - consistently fantastic photos. Thank you for uploading and sharing them with us all. Many people have enjoyed (and will continue to enjoy) seeing them. Your photos have certainly brought Niseko to the attention of a lot of people within the site too, in a very positive way. Hope to hear about Chile too. Have a great summer and keep in touch! Link to post Share on other sites
deanrobi 2 Posted May 5, 2009 Share Posted May 5, 2009 Mike, excellent photo's as usual. The sequence shots were unreal. Is that done with some form of editing program Link to post Share on other sites
Mike Pow 52 Posted May 5, 2009 Share Posted May 5, 2009 Thanks. Sequence of shots taken, then layered on top of each other in Photoshop. Link to post Share on other sites
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