Niseko Now: Wednesday 21st February 2024
- Feb 21, 2024
- 4 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 5cm
Snowfall at base this season 783cm
Posted on Wednesday 21st February 2024 This is an archived report. The latest Niseko Now report can be found here
Good morning from Niseko.
I am happy to report some fresh snow this morning. Hurray!
It's a modest amount, for sure, but it is most welcome and it is good to feel colder conditions too.
All being well, there's more coming over the coming several days.
Ski lifts all seem to be opening as scheduled too, so we should be able to check out how much there is across the mountain.
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Niseko Avalanche Report
Mountain base 6am: 3cm snowfall. Moiwa 800m: -17.7℃, NNW8.7m/s, 5cm snowfall with snowdrifts up to 40cm. Mikaeri 764m: -10℃, N4m/s, good visibility. Annupuri1000m: -14.6℃, WNW7.1m/s, snowdrifts developing. Village 1000m: -13℃, WNW5.0m/s. Hirafu Hanazono 1000m: -14.6℃, NNW3.1m/s, 5cm snowfall. Hanazono 800m: -11.3℃, NNW6.6m/s. Coastal data: Benkei cape NNW15m/s, Kamui cape W9m/s, 1027hPa, 1.7m waves.
The atmospheric pressure gradient is flattening and the wind is calming down on the sea and the mountains, however snowdrifts are slowly accumulating in areas above 900m elevations, slabs up to 40cm thickness are forming in knoll terrains. These new snowdrifts are starting to stabilize, however avalanche risk will remain highly considerable in areas such as Backbowl sidewalls, Nishi-One (west ridge) south aspects and Mikaeri Bowl. Gates are scheduled to open. Please follow the ski patrol’s instructions. Do not duck the rope to access Fujiwara no Sawa, or strictly off limits Haru no taki and Yu no sawa area. You'll lose your pass and your trust. Long awaited new snow has arrived, a little insufficient but better than not. Ski carefully. This information is issued to provide information of the backcountry area. Accidents can be prevented if you’re careful. If the Rules are neglected, the restrictions will become more strict, and nobody wants that to happen. Niseko is a ski resort and has its own rules and background. Please respect the Niseko Rules.
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Individual ski area information for Wednesday 21st February 2024
The below snow depth and snowfall numbers are manually checked each morning from official sources.
Lift information is the planned operations for the day at the time of writing and subject to change.
Niseko Tokyu Grand Hirafu
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 10cm
- Base: 10cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 290cm (+10cm since yesterday)
- Base: 90cm (no change since yesterday)
Lifts (scheduled):
- All lifts apart from King Number 1 pair and King Number 2 quad (normal operations)
- The Ace Family quad, Ace Number 2 quad (Center Four), Hirafu Gondola and Holiday Number 1 pair lifts are scheduled to be open until 7:00pm
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Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 5cm
- Base: 5cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 225cm (+5cm since yesterday)
- Base: 150cm (+10cm since yesterday)
Lifts (scheduled):
- All lifts
- The Hanazono Symphony Gondola is scheduled to be open until 7:00pm
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Niseko Annupuri Kokusai
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 220cm (no change since yesterday)
- Base: 140cm (-20cm since yesterday)
Lifts (scheduled):
- All lifts
- The Jumbo Number 1 quad lift is scheduled to be open until 7:30pm
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Niseko Village Ski Resort
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 225cm (-2cm since yesterday)
- Base: 134cm (-2cm since yesterday)
Lifts (scheduled):
- All lifts apart from Country Road
- The Upper Village Gondola, Village Express and Banzai Chair are scheduled to be open until 7:00pm
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Floodlit night skiing is planned daily until Wednesday 20th March 2024.
Night skiing is usually until 7:00pm at Hirafu, Hanazono, Village and until 7:30pm at Annupuri.
Niseko Now 2023-2024 season |
Data as of Wednesday 21st February 2024 Total snowfall at base so far 783cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 74 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 62cm (8th January) November 2023 snowfall 120cm reported on 11 days December 2023 snowfall 247cm reported on 24 days January 2024 snowfall 298cm reported on 24 days February 2024 snowfall 118cm reported on 15 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.