Niseko Now: Thursday 29th December 2022
- Dec 29, 2022
- 4 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 15cm
Snowfall at base this season 323cm
Posted on Thursday 29th December 2022 This is an archived report. The latest Niseko Now report can be found here
It is feeling much colder this morning, I am pleased to report. Niseko Village are reporting -16C up top there. Brrrr.
So yes, temperatures are back to more like how we expect them, and there has also been a nice layer of fresh snow. I have measured 15cm, with most of that coming while most of us were sleeping. There might be more than that higher up and while I'm not sure it will be enough for a proper reset, further snow is forecast over these last few days of 2022. It is snowing now.
Is that that chance of some sun on New Years Eve I see?
At the start of the day, the gondola lifts at Village and Annupuri are on hold due to wind.
Interestingly, those two ski areas are also showing their top lifts (Wonderland and Jumbo Number 4) as 'on hold' this morning. I am not sure why, but perhaps their opening is imminent?
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Niseko Avalanche Report
Mountain base -5℃, 15cm snowfall in 12hs, strong west wind, poor visibility. Moiwa 800m: -8.2℃, WSW8.7m/s, 20cm snowfall from midnight, snowdrift development. Annupuri 1000m: -9℃, snowstorm, poor visibility, snowdrift development. Hanazono Hirafu: -10℃, ESE 0.5m/s, 10cm snowfall. Niseko Village 1000m: -9.4℃, NW2.9m/s, Coastal data: Benkei cape NW23m/s, Kamui cape WSW15m/s, 1012hPa, 1.6m waves.
The isobars got tighter under the wintery pressure system from midnight, strong snow and wind are blowing over the west side of the mountain range. Looking at snow cat's fracture test operated at 800m elevation at Moiwa, the layer between newly formed 30cm snowdrifts and 80cm wet snow can easily fracture. According to the weather data and snowfall transition, the avalanche risk is high on the cornice and knoll slopes over 900m elevation throughout the afternoon. The gates opening is yet to be decided. Please follow the patrols instructions. The snow under the 800m elevation and in the tree runs is in good condition. Skiing and snowboarding are inherently dangerous sports. There are full of hidden dangers including avalanches in the winter mountains. This information is provided for the safety of all resort users. Please respect the Niseko Rules. Beware of frostbites.
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Ski area information for Thursday 29th December 2022
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.
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: 15cm
- Base: 15cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 230cm (no change since yesterday)
- Base: 85cm (+10cm change 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
- Swinging Monkey
Courses:
- All courses are now open except Large and Dynamic
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Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 10cm
- Base: 17cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 170cm (+10cm since yesterday)
- Base: 140cm (+13cm 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
- Base: 0cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 110cm (no change since yesterday)
- Base: 95cm (no change since yesterday)
Lifts:
- Annupuri Gondola *ON HOLD AT START OF DAY
- Dream Number 1 quad
- Jumbo Number 1 quad [* open until 7:30pm for night skiing]
- Jumbo Number 2 pair
- Jumbo Number 3 pair
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Niseko Village Ski Resort
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 0cm
- Base: 0cm
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 110cm (+10cm since yesterday)
- Base: 100cm (+5cm since yesterday)
Lifts:
- Niseko Gondola *ON HOLD AT START OF DAY
- Village Express
- Community Chair [* open until 7:00pm for night skiing]
- Banzai Chair [* open until 7:00pm for night skiing]
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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 Thursday 29th December 2022 Total snowfall at base so far 323cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 30 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 21cm (17th December) November 2022 snowfall 17cm reported on 5 days December 2022 snowfall 306cm reported on 25 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.