rach 1 Posted June 20, 2006 Share Posted June 20, 2006 OK iwate people, or people who have been, tell me about the snow conditions you have experienced up there. I'm thinking of taking a trip this next winter and wondering where the best places to hit might be snow condition wise. I know it depends on the day and all that but generally, y'know. Link to post Share on other sites
daver 0 Posted June 20, 2006 Share Posted June 20, 2006 i think Geto is the place to be. Link to post Share on other sites
happyhappy 0 Posted June 21, 2006 Share Posted June 21, 2006 What are the other main places in Iwate - Appi and Shizukuishi. Don't hear much about Shizukuishi.... Link to post Share on other sites
jgraves 0 Posted June 22, 2006 Share Posted June 22, 2006 Fantastic snow conditions every time I've gone to Iwate. Don't go expecting lots of vert--the mountains just aren't that tall--but they do offer loads of really fun terrain. Phenomenal skiing to be done there, just means more, but shorter, lift rides. The big plus is, your legs hold up for the entire day. Appi is the one resort with vert, lots of varied terrain and always has some freshies somewhere if you explore or know where to look. There are a handful of smaller ski places along the river between Iwate-san and Hachimantai-san heading west. I forget all their names and which of them I liked best, but I remember having some good skiing at most of them. (And then there's the bc in the area, but that's a different story) Link to post Share on other sites
daver 0 Posted June 22, 2006 Share Posted June 22, 2006 TB do you tour in the iwate area? i've wanted to put my skins on over there. if you do, we should meet up next season for an outing. Link to post Share on other sites
grungy-gonads 54 Posted June 22, 2006 Share Posted June 22, 2006 Wasn't Captain Stags hangout Geto? He had lots of good things to say if I remember correctly. Link to post Share on other sites
cal 6 Posted June 24, 2006 Share Posted June 24, 2006 Do those places get really busy? I suppose there is less choice nearby than places like Hakuba and the like.. Link to post Share on other sites
soubriquet 0 Posted June 24, 2006 Share Posted June 24, 2006 I went to Appi in March, and the snow was excellent. Noticeably colder and drier than Yamagata. I liked Appi very much. http://www.snowjapanforums.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi/topic/1/6634.html?#000000 Link to post Share on other sites
rach 1 Posted June 26, 2006 Author Share Posted June 26, 2006 Thanks for the info folks! Interesting to hear about the dryness of the snow - Yamagata snow bit wet then? Link to post Share on other sites
soubriquet 0 Posted June 26, 2006 Share Posted June 26, 2006 Ho hum, rach, you've put me on the spot. In my limited experience (3 seasons) I wouldn't call Yamagata snow wet, but it's not normally silky powder either. The best (coldest) conditions I've had are at Appi and Onikobe (Miyagi). This is all relative. No rock or grass skiing here, and my ski bases are unmarked. Link to post Share on other sites
AK 77 0 Posted June 26, 2006 Share Posted June 26, 2006 Hi Rach, First qu - ski or snowboard? I know this sounds like a lame question, but Appi is alot more fun if you are a skier (moguls). It's still pretty fun if you are on a board, but there are better places. Geto is good - I only went there once, but it was definately fun (and had good powder when i went in early December - 99-2000 season). By far my favourite place was 'Hachimantai' (NOT 'Hachimantai Resort' - nearby, and rubbish) which only has 3 old lifts, but the best terrain and snow, and had a 'no boundaries' = anywhere ok, policy from the patrol. As a result it was popular with local snowboard pros, BC people, but few others! Never queued there, ever. It is about 45 minutes, at most, i think, from Morioka. check it out! also try Hakkoda-san in Aomori, if you are going that far north anyway - another great place Link to post Share on other sites
jgraves 0 Posted June 27, 2006 Share Posted June 27, 2006 Daver: Love it up there. I wish I could give you a definite yes, but I'm hanging up the books for a real job pretty soon, so who knows how much skiing it will allow for. Think the honeymoon is over, but you never know. I'll let you know come November what the magic eighball says. AK: Agree with you that its a great place, but careful what you say on a forum like this. "no boundaries=anywhere OK" is a dangerous thing to say. If you go out of bounds, you better be knowledgable, prepared for the worst,and be with a parter who can save your @ss if the worst happens. There are signs all over the boundary of Hachimantai that say something like "ski at your own risk. If you don't have proper avi gear, do not go beyond this point." Words to live by, even if you can't read them. Link to post Share on other sites
BagOfCrisps 24 Posted June 27, 2006 Share Posted June 27, 2006 how long does it take you to get to Hakuba and the likes rach? Link to post Share on other sites
AK 77 0 Posted June 29, 2006 Share Posted June 29, 2006 Quote: Originally posted by Tohoku bum: AK: Agree with you that its a great place, but careful what you say on a forum like this. "no boundaries=anywhere OK" is a dangerous thing to say. If you go out of bounds, you better be knowledgable, prepared for the worst,and be with a parter who can save your @ss if the worst happens. There are signs all over the boundary of Hachimantai that say something like "ski at your own risk. If you don't have proper avi gear, do not go beyond this point." Words to live by, even if you can't read them. I was referring to the 'rules' of the resort - which, even including the signs, are pretty unusual for resorts in Japan. Agree with what you say though - took all that as given. Link to post Share on other sites
firedog23 0 Posted June 30, 2006 Share Posted June 30, 2006 The signs that are up at Hachimantai Forest were put up after a couple of deaths last year. You still can do pretty much what you like but they do approach people more often. The snow has usually been good in the area and the bonus is the crowds tend to be smaller unless you happen upon Appi but there are so many other options than Appi. Link to post Share on other sites
Yuki's Passion 1 Posted June 30, 2006 Share Posted June 30, 2006 Quote: Originally posted by BagOfCrisps: how long does it take you to get to Hakuba and the likes rach? Rach and I are both in Kobe and its bout 5+ hours ta da Hakuba village BOC depending on the weather/road conditions. Link to post Share on other sites
lin 0 Posted June 30, 2006 Share Posted June 30, 2006 I didn't realise it was that far. Which route do you take? Link to post Share on other sites
BillTheBinMan 0 Posted July 1, 2006 Share Posted July 1, 2006 Go east then go north no doubt_! Link to post Share on other sites
rach 1 Posted July 5, 2006 Author Share Posted July 5, 2006 I usually meet a friend in Osaka and pick up someone else in southern Nagano on the way up there. Link to post Share on other sites
oo 1 Posted July 24, 2006 Share Posted July 24, 2006 When I went to Appi the conditions were really good. I don't think they get as much as other places, but what they do get is good. Link to post Share on other sites
BagOfCrisps 24 Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 The problem I have with that area, whatever that means, is that there only seems to be a couple of resorts. Compare that to Nagano where there's tons of places near each other and it looks like a big trek. Link to post Share on other sites
soubriquet 0 Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 Well yes. If you're on a budget or pressed for time, then look elsewhere. The best thing about Tohoku is the absence of crowds (and Rondoners) Bit like Yorkshire, actually. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 Are there lots of people there who thrust their stubbly jaw into your face, poke you in the chest, and growl "We're raght friendly oop 'ere, not lahk you snooty Sootherners!!"? Link to post Share on other sites
soubriquet 0 Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 No no. Not at all. We Tohoku folks are very friendly. It's easy. No-one comes here. Don't bother coming, just send your wallet. Link to post Share on other sites
2pints-mate 0 Posted July 28, 2006 Share Posted July 28, 2006 We don't have a lot of time unfortunately soubriquet. Pretty tight schedule. And we're Rondoners. Link to post Share on other sites
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