Niseko Now: Saturday 29th February 2020
- Feb 29, 2020
- 4 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 3cm
Snowfall at base this season 659cm
Posted on Saturday 29th February 2020 This is an archived report. The latest Niseko Now report can be found here
Cold conditions continue this morning with 3cm more fresh snowfall to report. While the day started off with those lovely blue skies, it did get to snow during a fair bit of the daytime yesterday.
This morning we once again have blue skies, but there's more of a kind of hazy thin cloud look going on. Still, it is a fine morning indeed.
It's March tomorrow. Yikes! (Recap coming on Monday or Tuesday).
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Someone sent in mail asking for advice regarding the coronavirus situation. I feel totally unqualified to make any kind of statement on that kind of thing on this platform.
For what it's worth: while it is obviously a worrying topic in general, I am going about my normal life. I am making sure that I am washing my hands and am generally being aware/careful.
That is what I would recommend to my friends - and what they also seem to be doing too.
As far as I can tell, this morning none of the ski resorts here in Niseko have posted anything about the situation on their websites ---- so from their point of view it is 'business as usual'.
Lifts are opening as planned. I think I'm going to catch a few hours myself.
I would expect things to be quiet today though so people heading out should be able to enjoy that rather novel situation!
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Niseko Avalanche Report
Mountain base: -7℃, 2cm snowfall in 12h, sunny. Moiwa800m: ENE 58°2.8m/s, -9.4℃. Annupuri 1100m: W 259°1.4m/s, -13.1℃. Yu no sawa: NW 310°1.2m/s, -12.8℃. Village900m: N 338°1.1m/s, -11.3℃. Hirafu1000m: NW 329°3m/s, -12.7℃. Hanazono720m: W 282°1.5m/s, -9.8℃. Sea of Japan Benkei cape: S3m/s, Kamui cape: SE2m/s, 1022hPa, 0.6m waves.
A northerly wind persisted from yesterday and momentarily picked up during the night. 20+cm snowdrift patches can be found in leeward slopes above 600m. According to reports and observations, there seems to be no notable avalanche hazard today. All gates will open as they’re ready. A thin blanket of fresh snow can be found throughout the mountain, but the conditions can drastically change depending on elevation and aspect of the slope. Beware of over-speeding and hitting trees. A low-pressure system is approaching from the west; beware of sudden weather change. Always keep in mind that the area outside the gate is not within the resort management anymore. Better make conservative decisions.
Good groomers conditions. Have a nice day.
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Niseko Grand Hirafu
Official snow depth (reported by resort):
- Peak: 295cm
- Base: 125cm
All lifts are normally operating EXCEPT:
- Ace Number 1 pair lift (normally rested)
- King Number 2 quad lift (normally rested)
All courses normally open
Lifts scheduled for late operations:
- Ace Family quad until 8:30pm
- Ace Number 2 Center Four quad until 8:20pm
- Hirafu Gondola until 8:10pm
- Holiday Number 1 pair until 8:30pm
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Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Official snow depth (reported by resort):
- Peak: 212cm
- Base: 125cm
All lifts are normally operating
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Niseko Annupuri
Official snow depth (reported by resort):
- Peak: 180cm
- Base: 110cm
All lifts are normally operating
Lift scheduled for late operations:
- Jumbo Number 1 quad until 8:30pm
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Niseko Village
Official snow depth (reported by resort):
- Peak: 190cm
- Base: 110cm
All lifts normally operating EXCEPT:
- Country Road Chair (normally rested)
Lifts scheduled for late operations:
- Annupuri Village Gondola until 8:00pm
- Village Express until 8:00pm
- Banzai Chair until 8:00pm
Niseko Now 2019-2020 season |
Data as of Saturday 29th February 2020 Total snowfall at base so far 659cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 70 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 33cm (21st January) November 2019 snowfall 85cm reported on 10 days December 2019 snowfall 207cm reported on 21 days January 2020 snowfall 224cm reported on 20 days February 2020 snowfall 143cm 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.