Niseko Now: Wednesday 16th January 2019
- Jan 16, 2019
- 4 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 11cm
Snowfall at base this season 547cm
Posted on Wednesday 16th January 2019 This is an archived report. The latest Niseko Now report can be found here
Had some early toast this morning before going out for a quick walk around Hirafu base area. It is nice to have some lovely fresh snow on the ground this morning. I am measuring 11cm, so it is not a huge amount but more is on the way.
Wind is almost definitely going to be an issue in the coming days with tomorrow looking like it will be full on blizzard conditions. To what extent it will affect lifts - we will just have to wait and see.
There are lots of people lining up early for first lifts this morning to get some early first tracks in on the fresh snow as you can see on the webcam images below. It looks like all resort areas are opening as planned at the start of the day today.
Have fun. And be sure to be strapped in for tomorrow!
The Free Ride Park at Hirafu will be closed today for layout maintenance.
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Niseko Avalanche Report:
Mountain base 6am: 15cm snowfall in 24hours. Moiwa 800m: -9.1℃, W6m/s. Mikaeri junction: NW8m/s, large development of snowdrifts from southerly wind. Annupuri 1150m: -12℃, NW15m/s, stormy. 1120m snow depth 185cm. Mizuno no sawa: -5℃, 13cm snowdrifts in 24hours. Hirafu peak: -11℃, strong NW wind, snow storm. Suttsu weather station: -3.2℃, NW15.2m/s, Kutchan: -4.6℃, 118cm snow depth. Benkei cape: NNW17m/s, Kamui cape: WNW14m/s, 1007hPa, 3.5m waves.
A north westerly storm has picked up as the low-pressure system moved east, making cornices and snowdrifts develop in leeward slopes above 1000m. The low-pressure left 20cm of snow overnight. Loose snow avalanches are to be expected in 30°treerun slopes. Jan 15th layer is present under the low-pressure snowfall and an uneven (Jan 16th) layer with a large temperature difference between yesterday’s and today’s snow has formed. Both are weak hoar layers. The storm is forecasted to pick up, making cornices and snowdrifts develop drastically. The avalanche risk is high and will stay high through tomorrow.
Better not go near cornice slopes today. Especially the O-sawa (annupuri bowl) cornice slopes. Traversing under cornices can easily trigger a slide. All gates opening is undecided, please follow the ski patrol’s instructions. The snow in the trees is a little dense and good. Better not venture too far out today.
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Ski resort operation information: Wednesday 16th January 2019
The below information is manually checked each morning and believed to be correct at time of report. Subject to change!
Niseko Grand Hirafu
Official snow depth (reported by resort):
- Peak: 260cm
- Base: 120cm
Ski lifts operating:
- All lifts are operating as planned (King Number 2 quad not operating)
- The Ace Family quad (until 8:30pm), Ace Center 4 quad (8:20pm), Hirafu Gondola (until 8:10pm) and Holiday Number 1 pair (until 8:30pm) lifts are normally open during the evening
- The Center Four lift will be open from 8:00am until 8:20am until 31st January 2019 (500 yen charge required).
Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Official snow depth (reported by resort):
- Peak: 185cm
- Base: 145cm
Ski lifts operating:
- All lifts are operating as planned
- The Hanazono lifts are normally open until 3:50pm (Number 3 until 3:30pm)
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Niseko Annupuri
Official snow depth (reported by resort):
- Peak: 265cm
- Base: 140cm
Ski lifts operating:
- All lifts are operating as planned
- The Jumbo 1 lift is normally open until 8:30pm during the evening
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Niseko Village
Official snow depth (reported by resort):
- Peak: 265cm
- Base: 140cm
Ski lifts operating:
- All lifts are operating as planned (Country Road not operating)
- The Upper Village Gondola, Village Express and Banzai Chair lifts are normally open until 8:00pm during the evening
Niseko Now 2018-2019 season |
Data as of Wednesday 16th January 2019 Total snowfall at base so far 547cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 47 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 32cm (29th December) November 2018 snowfall 84cm reported on 8 days December 2018 snowfall 333cm reported on 26 days January 2019 snowfall 130cm reported on 13 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.