Niseko Now: Sunday 20th March 2022
- Mar 20, 2022
- 4 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 1cm
Snowfall at base this season 1113cm
Posted on Sunday 20th March 2022 This is an archived report. The latest Niseko Now report can be found here
We have another dusting of snow and while it isn't 1cm, I feel justified in adding that mm from yesterday to add 1cm to the report today.
As I write this report there is some very (very, very) light snow falling. And unfortunately, it's windy on the mountain this morning - enough for the top lifts to be on hold (along with the gondola at Annupuri) at the start of the day.
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Yesterday I said in my initial report that night skiing was going to be ending on Monday. That was incorrect and it was updated later in the day when I realised my mistake. Sorry about that! Today, Sunday, is of course the last day of night skiing this season.
It is always kind of sad to see it happen. It's one of the signs of spring and a gradual winding down of the season. I only made it out for night skiing myself a few times this year and when I did it was very (very, very) quiet.
I sometimes wonder what the economics are of night skiing for a ski area - even in a normal season...
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Niseko Avalanche Report
Moiwa base: -3℃, moderate wind, 1cm snowfall. Moiwa 800m: -6.1℃, NNW9.4m/s, 18m/s, gusts. Annupuri 1150m: -9.1℃, N7.6m/s. Hirafu 1000m: -8.8℃, N14.2m/s, blizzard and poor visibility. Coastal data Benkei cape: NE18m/s, Kamui cape: ENE2m/s, 1007hPa, 1.7m waves.
Cold air mass inflow from the Sea of Okhotsk. The isobars were tight throughout the night and north to northwesterly wind is blowing strong above 750m elevation. Snowfall is scarce and wind-blown, but snowdrifts are forming in leeward aspects. Cornices have grown long and thin, snowdrifts are forming unstable slabs and are prone to fall/slide easily. The mountain is back to cold winter condition. The wind is forecasted to calm down after 10am, however the avalanche risk may rise as the snowdrift amount grows. It is highly recommended to stay away from slopes with new snow deposit for a while after the wind has settled down. All gates are scheduled to open, however will depend on chairlifts operation. Please follow the ski patrol’s instructions. Sunlight is weak and the surface undulations are difficult to see. The new snow will turn into sticky stop-snow as the temperature rises. Please be careful. Refrain from leaving tracks at the bottom of the valleys in order to minimize risks of glide avalanche accidents. The mountain is slowly shifting into Spring. Have a nice day.
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Planned ski area operations: Sunday 20th 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: 405cm (-5cm)
- Base: 190cm (no change)
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
Planned season:
- Niseko Grand Hirafu plans to be open until Thursday 5th May
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Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 345cm (-5cm)
- Base: 230cm (-2cm)
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 0cm
- Base: 0cm
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]
Planned season:
- Niseko HANAZONO plans to be open until Sunday 3rd April
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Niseko Annupuri
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 360cm (no change)
- Base: 200cm (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
Planned season:
- Niseko Annupuri plans to be open until Thursday 5th May
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Niseko Village
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 310cm
- Base: 200cm
Planned lift operations (subject to weather conditions):
- Niseko Gondola
- Village Express
- Community Chair [* open for night skiing until 7:00pm]
- Banzai Chair
- Wonderland Chair
Planned season:
- Niseko Village plans to be open until Sunday 3rd April
Niseko Now 2021-2022 season |
Data as of Sunday 20th March 2022 Total snowfall at base so far 1113cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 94 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 59cm reported on 10 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.