Niseko Now: Sunday 19th January 2014
- Jan 19, 2014
- 3 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 2cm
Snowfall at base this season 737cm
Posted on Sunday 19th January 2014 This is an archived report. The latest Niseko Now report can be found here
Just a few cm of snow to report from here in Hirafu village area this morning. It has been a somewhat dull and overcast start to the day here though things have been clearing up away from the mountain and looking out towards Yotei where there's lots of clear blue sky. Some bright areas on the lower mountain as well at the moment... feels like it's going to clear up again?
Fairly strong northerly winds this morning are affecting some of the lifts at resorts including the Annupuri Gondola, Jumbo 3 and 4 lifts; the Niseko Gondola and Wonderland Chair at Niseko Village; the King Number 3, King Number 4 and Ace Number 4 lifts at Grand Hirafu; and the top Hanazono lift. Wind speeds of up to 19m/s being logged by the people over on Annupuri.
Hopefully see some more snowfall later on tonight and then it looks like it'll be on and off for the first half of the coming week, but probably nothing major in terms of snow. Come on now... we want our refills! Snow falling or not, it is going to remain cold.
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Niseko Avalanche Report
Niseko base 6am: -10C, trace new snow in the last 12 hrs, falling from 5am.Moiwa 800m -11C, wind W from 5am, Annupuri 1150m -13C, wind NNW 15m/s, some snow drift development. Hirafu 1000m -12C, wind N15m/s, snowfall and snow drift development from 5am. Annupuri Peak 1308m -12.5C, wind N17.6m/s – wind predicted at noon NW15m/s. Cape Benkei SE3m/s, Cape Kamui ESE3m/s, wave 2m, pressure 1014hpa.
Little snowfall in the last 24hrs and the mountain is tracked out. Isobars are moving closer together and snow clouds will develop. Above 800m rapid development of snow drifts is expected. Backcountry conditions are not good, gates 2 & 3 will be closed, others yet to be decided. Please follow Patrols decisions. The Jan 17th frost layer will become possible fracture layer in future snowpack.
Avalanche occurrence and scale are related to how the snow has fallen. During and directly after storms are high risk times for avalanches in Niseko. Today the danger of avalanches is high on steep slopes due to wind effected slabs. The mountain conditions change everyday, dont over estimate your skills, safety first. Dont duck ropes looking for fresh lines, Beware trees, cracks. Have a great day.
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Official snow depth numbers and lift news at time of writing:
Grand Hirafu / Hanazono:
Top - 400cm
Base - 195cm
Niseko Village:
Top - 320cm
Base - 220cm
Annupuri:
Top - 270cm
Base - 210cm
Niseko Now 2013-2014 season |
Data as of Sunday 19th January 2014 Total snowfall at base so far 737cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 49 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 40cm (14th January) November 2013 snowfall 123cm reported on 9 days December 2013 snowfall 275cm reported on 22 days January 2014 snowfall 339cm reported on 18 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.