Niseko Now: Tuesday 21st February 2023
- Feb 21, 2023
- 4 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 21cm
Snowfall at base this season 896cm
Posted on Tuesday 21st February 2023 This is an archived report. The latest Niseko Now report can be found here
This morning Hirafu and Hanazono are reporting up to 25cm of fresh snowfall over the last 24 hours, and the Avalanche Report has up to 40cm. I have measured 21cm at my measuring point near Hirafu base. Very nice.
What's more, the wind that we put up with yesterday has calmed down somewhat - lifts should be open, gates may be delayed but hopefully open, and conditions should be excellent.
No further words necessary!
Oh yes.... blue skies and sunshine. Bit unexpected, perhaps, but most welcome!
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Niseko Avalanche Report
Mountain base -8℃, light wind, 25cm snowfall. Moiwa 800m: -10.3℃, NNW2.3m/s, 30cm snowfall with large snowdrift development. Annupuri1100m: -14.2℃, NNE6.3m/s, 40cm snowfall, snowdrift development. Mizuno no sawa: -12.7℃, NNE7.3m/s. Hirafu Hanazono: -13.4℃, NE6.8m/s, 30cm snowfall. Hanazono#3: -11.0℃, NNE3.2m/s. Coastal data: Benkei cape ENE11m/s, Kamui cape ESE2m/s, 1019hPa, 1.5m waves.
The strong, 20+m/s, wind peaked around 6pm yesterday and started to calm down after, however 15m/s NE wind has persisted above 1000m elevation. 25cm of light crystal snow has blanketed the base, but yesterday’s high winds has made snowdrifts largely grow, 150cm or even deeper, and changed the terrain in some areas. The new snow seems relatively stable, however would widely break under snow-cat pressure test. The avalanche risk is high at the Backbowl, Annupuri bowl, Higashi-One cornice slopes during the morning. Extra caution is required. 60+cm thick avalanches running down beyond 500m distance could occur with skiing stimulation. Stay away from the gully bottoms where avalanches run through. Gates opening will be delayed, but eventually open. Ask the ski patrol some advice and gear up for the backcountry. Do not duck ropes. A large-scale slide is likely to occur in the Haru no Taki area due to slabs formed with radiant heating. Do not go there if you care about life. Cracks are hidden under the new snow. Buddy-up to avoid critical accidents. The snow in the treeruns is fantastic. Have you switched on your beacon? Have a nice day.
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Ski area information for Tuesday 21st February 2023
The below snow depth and snowfall numbers are manually checked each morning from official sources.
Lift information is the planned operations for the day, weather permitting.
Official snow depth numbers in brackets show the change since previous report.
Niseko Tokyu Grand Hirafu
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 20cm
- Base: 20cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 385cm (+15cm since yesterday)
- Base: 170cm (? since yesterday)
Lifts:
- Ace Family quad [* open until for 7:00pm for night skiing]
- Ace Number 2 quad (Center Four) [* open until for 7:00pm for night skiing]
- Ace Number 3 pair
- Hirafu Gondola
- Holiday Number 1 pair
- King Number 3 quad
- King Number 4
- Swinging Monkey
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Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 25cm
- Base: 25cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 325cm (+15cm since yesterday)
- Base: 265cm (+15cm since yesterday)
Lifts:
- Hanazono Number 1
- Hanazono Number 2 quad
- Hanazono Number 3 quad
- Hanazono Symphony Gondola [* open until 7:00pm for night skiing]
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Niseko Annupuri Kokusai
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 0cm (really?)
- Base: 0cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 250cm (-10cm since yesterday)
- Base: 180cm (-20cm since yesterday)
Lifts:
- Annupuri Gondola
- Dream Number 1 quad
- Jumbo Number 1 quad [* open until 7:30pm for night skiing]
- Jumbo Number 2 pair
- Jumbo Number 3 pair [* normally open on weekends and holidays]
- Jumbo Number 4 pair
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Niseko Village Ski Resort
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 245cm (no change since yesterday)
- Base: 220cm (no change since yesterday)
Lifts:
- Niseko Gondola
- Upper Village Gondola
- Village Express
- Community Chair [* open until 7:00pm for night skiing]
- Banzai Chair [* open until 7:00pm for night skiing]
- Wonderland Chair
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Niseko Moiwa Ski Resort
Lifts:
- Number 1 pair lift
- Number 2 pair lift
- Quad lift
Niseko Now 2022-2023 season |
Data as of Tuesday 21st February 2023 Total snowfall at base so far 896cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 78 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 24cm (27th & 28th January, 6th February) November 2022 snowfall 17cm reported on 5 days December 2022 snowfall 336cm reported on 27 days January 2023 snowfall 332cm reported on 27 days February 2023 snowfall 211cm reported on 19 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.