Niseko Now: Saturday 12th March 2022
- Mar 12, 2022
- 4 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 0cm
Snowfall at base this season 1098cm
Posted on Saturday 12th March 2022 This is an archived report. The latest Niseko Now report can be found here
Unfortunately, this morning have to report some rain. Yes, it was raining last night, which is never something I like to report. It was quite heavy at times too.
This morning I can see a slight kind of dusting of snow. Hanazono reports 1cm, other ski areas 0cm. And while it didn't feel particularly windy to me when I was outside a while back, all of the top lifts are not opening as planned due to wind up there. Pesky, indeed. The Annupuri Gondola is also affected, as is the (scheduled to be open this weekend) Jumbo Number 3 lift.
Conditions will be.... spring-y, no doubt. I'd expect a bit of crust that will soften up as the morning progresses. If we hadn't already, I think we definitely need to adjust expectations to 'spring' now. Resets and the like will be a super nice bonus ('for your excite skiing lifestyles').
We might see some fresh snow falling again around Tuesday, so we can look forward to that for the chance of a reset/refresh.
PS: Update as I am about to post at 8:30am --- light snow has started falling!
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Niseko Avalanche Report
Moiwa base: -1℃, moderate westerly wind, slight snowfall, good visibility. Moiwa 800m: -2.4℃, WNW12.4m/s. Annupuri 1150m: -5.6℃, WNW9.6m/s, icy slopes difficult to groom. Hirafu 1000m: -5.5℃, 1250m: -5℃, strong westerly wind, light snowfall. Coastal data Benkei cape: NNW14m/s, Kamui cape: NW10m/s, 1011hPa, 1.2m waves.
The atmospheric pressure gradient got steeper and a westerly wind is blowing strong above 750m elevation. A shallow snowdrift of windblown snow is forming in leeward slopes. Cold airmass inflow occurred during the night and froze the surface. The avalanche risk is low today, however gates opening is undetermined. Please follow the ski patrol’s instructions. The off-piste is in rough condition. Beware of crashing and falling into cracks and creeks. New cracks are forming in Gate 11 Muzuno no Sawa area and it is now shut for the season. We’d like to thank the Niseko Village patrol team for the hard work controlling the area safety throughout the season. The mountain season is shifting to Spring. The snow condition changes drastically during this time of the season, so please be alert at anytime. The snow will soften after 10am and should become easier for riding. Have a good weekend.
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Planned ski area operations: Saturday 12th March 2022
The below snow depth and snowfall data is manually checked each morning from official sources.
Lift information is the planned operations for the day (nature might intervene).
Niseko Grand Hirafu
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 400cm (-5cm)
- Base: 195cm (-5cm)
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 0cm
- Base: 0cm
Planned lift operations (subject to weather conditions):
- Ace Family quad
- Ace Number 2 Center Four quad [* open for night skiing until 7:00pm]
- Hirafu Gondola
- Holiday Number 1 pair
- King Number 3 quad
- King Number 4
- Swinging Monkey
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Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 343cm (-2cm)
- Base: 243cm (-7cm)
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 1cm
- Base: 1cm
Planned lift operations (subject to weather conditions):
- Hanazono Number 1
- Hanazono Number 2 quad
- Hanazono Number 3 quad
- Hanazono Symphony Gondola [* open for night skiing until 7:00pm]
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Niseko Annupuri
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 360cm (no change)
- Base: 250cm (no change)
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 0cm
- Base: 0cm
Planned lift operations (subject to weather conditions):
- Annupuri Gondola
- Dream Number 1 quad
- Jumbo Number 1 quad [* open for night skiing until 7:30pm]
- Jumbo Number 2 pair
- Jumbo Number 3 pair
- Jumbo Number 4 pair
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Niseko Village
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 310cm
- Base: 230cm
Planned lift operations (subject to weather conditions):
- Niseko Gondola
- Village Express
- Community Chair [* open for night skiing until 7:00pm]
- Banzai Chair
- Wonderland Chair
Niseko Now 2021-2022 season |
Data as of Saturday 12th March 2022 Total snowfall at base so far 1098cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 90 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 40cm (23rd December and 22nd February) November 2021 snowfall 85cm reported on 6 days December 2021 snowfall 307cm reported on 23 days January 2022 snowfall 325cm reported on 30 days February 2022 snowfall 337cm reported on 25 days March 2022 snowfall 44cm reported on 6 days |
All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Kutchan/Niseko. The 'new snowfall' number represents the amount of snow measured since the previous report. All opinions are those of the individual reporters. Information regarding ski area operations is manually checked every morning and is believed to be correct at the time of the report.