Snow almost gone from the Minamiuonuma mountains

[muikabochi 208]

...top areas of the mountains anyway.

 

Went for a ride up on Uonuma Skyline this afternoon. Only parts of it are open which is a shame, but some nice views of Minamiuonuma. Lovely bright blue in some directions, bit hazy in others. But not too hot, nice feel-good weather.

 

Of course, only part of Kagura still open in the region. Oh I believe Okutadami Maruyama is open until Sunday, but that's a fair drive away.

 

Stone dude

 

 

 

 

 

 

[BagOfCrisps 24]

Looks lovely.

 

Presume all that water is the rice fields?

[muikabochi 208]

Yes that's it Bag.

 

I seem to have tuned up the blue on that tree photo a bit too much. Ah well, never mind! I thought it looked a bit like a shaving brush.

[Mike Pow 52]

Fabulous

[cal 6]

Ahh muikapics!

 

Lovely greens in spring time.

[pdoull 2]

Great day for a ride & definitely the green season there now. Great pic's

Thanks for the update

[seemore 66]

Cheers Muika

[Slippery Jim 65]

Okutadami a ``fair drive?'' I remember doing a day trip there from Tokyo! Weak sauce, Muika

[muikabochi 208]

We just have different standards, obviously!

 

An hour is a fair drive when there are 20 other skijo within 30 minutes drive.

 

Why on earth did you do a day trip to Okutadami? That's nuts.

[Tubby Beaver 209]

we headed down to the beach area today as it was warm, if not really sunny. Interesting to to be on the sand and look up and see snow on the mountains.

 

 

 

 

 

I didn't think I'd find a dirtier beach than that in Shonan...turns out I was wrong!! Otaru Dream Beach....more like a fricking nightmare!! Rubbish everywhere.

[tokabochi 9]

How warm is it up there now Tubby?

 

Nice pics muika, I thought the Skyline would have all been open by now. Just the middle part by the looks?

[Tubby Beaver 209]

Weekend was 19-20, which was really nice. Shorts n t-shirt weather and non sweaty

[muikabochi 208]

tokabochi, the road off Toge is open, but only up to the look out point. I had to come back down and then go up behind Chateau Shiozawa. Got to the top there and turned left towards Ishiuchi, but that was blocked at that lookout point that's probably above Mr Granview so had to come back down the same way again.

[snowdude 44]

Still plenry of snow left on Yatsugadake mountain range.

Will be sometime in June or July before that all melts.

 

I wonder if they will have to send workers up Fujisan this year for the third year in a row to break up the snow so it will melt by August.

 

The last two years if they had not have done that the snow from the previous year would not all have completly melted before the new snow in September came.

[Tubby Beaver 209]

when I climbed Fuji last summer, there were still some pretty large snow patches in shaded areas off of the paths.

[snowdude 44]

Ok cool so it didnt all melt then before the next snow in September most probably.

 

It is only in recent years that the snow has taken so long to melt.

 

[sevenbeers 1]

First time poster but long time lurker.

 

TubbyBeaverInho, I'm curious about the first photo from the beach up to the mountains with the communication towers. There looks to be ski courses down the mountain. Are they, and if so what resort is it?

[Tubby Beaver 209]

Thats looking up to Sapporo Teine, but those "courses" I don't think are actual courses. Most of the runs are on the other side of the ridge. The trees are rideable though

[Alexander L 80]

we headed down to the beach area today as it was warm, if not really sunny. Interesting to to be on the sand and look up and see snow on the mountains.

 

 

 

 

 

I didn't think I'd find a dirtier beach than that in Shonan...turns out I was wrong!! Otaru Dream Beach....more like a fricking nightmare!! Rubbish everywhere.

 

 

For all the hype Otaru is disappointing.

[Alexander L 80]

With all those antennas one would need a dome when riding Teine.

[Tubby Beaver 209]

I think Otaru sucks

[@tokyo 14]

I thought it was generally thought of as a nice place?

[Tubby Beaver 209]

it is, but I've been a couple of times and I don't see whats good about the place. The "canal" area is about 100 metres long and its spitting distance from the sea.....just what exactly were they transporting that they needed to even build it in the first place!! The beer place is good but theres one in Sapporo and I'm not going all the way out there just for beer.....other than that, there doesn't appear to be anything else

[snowdude 44]

Otaru has a nice glass shop where you can buy various cut glass goods if your into collecting that sort of thing.

 

We bought a nice tankered (not sure if I spelt that correct) when we were there.

 

There is also a museum that goes with the shop if my memort serves me correct.

 

The food and beer was nice in one of the pub restaurants that we went to.

 

Otaru is ok to spend a half day if you happen to be passing through that area like we were but not worth making a special trip just to there.

 

It was a nice enough little town though.

 

[Alexander L 80]

it is, but I've been a couple of times and I don't see whats good about the place. The "canal" area is about 100 metres long and its spitting distance from the sea.....just what exactly were they transporting that they needed to even build it in the first place!! The beer place is good but theres one in Sapporo and I'm not going all the way out there just for beer.....other than that, there doesn't appear to be anything else

 

The canal was built to off load the ships in the bay BEFORE the port facilities were built. The docks and warehouses you see nearer the bay were built afterwards, cutting out the canal. They wanted to fill the canal in but in the end they kept it for romantic reasons.

 

I've been to Otaru numerous times but for me it's just a tourist trap. The canal looks great in all seasons, especially with snow all over it but that's just about it.

 

The car parks charge something stupid like 300Y an hour, and get there are rickshaw rides. Oh yai, oh yai, ding ding, tourists this way.

 

I visit Otaru for 3 reasons:

 

1) Masazushi Zenan

2) Asarikawa Onsen

3) Kiroro