Niseko Now: Friday 31st December 2021
- Dec 31, 2021
- 4 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 15cm
Snowfall at base this season 392cm
Posted on Friday 31st December 2021 This is an archived report. The latest Niseko Now report can be found here
Good morning from Niseko.
And for my last report of 2021 I have another 15cm of fresh snowfall to report. That makes my total for the season so far 392cm. On the last day of last year that number stood at 410cm, so a very number similar. I will do my usual wrap up kind of report for the season until now early next week.
Back to this morning and the snow continues to fall. Well, it was falling quite heavily as I started to put this report together, but as we approach 8:30am there's some blue sky appearing and it is getting much brighter. In fact, the sun is even starting to appear. So very changeable just in the last 30 minutes, and it might or might not last.
Generally though, the snow is only going to continue into next week. It is going to remain really cold too, as you would expect. Wonderful consistency.
Expect some fireworks tonight. Hopefully the skies will be clear for those. (And then it can get back to snowing!)
My report tomorrow might be a bit later than usual, but the season does not stop* and there will be snow to report to you. So I'll see you tomorrow morning. Have a good evening. Be good.
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* Curiously, one feature of a bunch of small local ski areas in Hokkaido is that they are closed on 31st December and 1st January every year. In fact, one of those that closes over New Year is the small ski area behind Kutchan Station, Asahigaoka. As far as I am aware this seems to be a Hokkaido thing.
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Niseko Avalanche Report
Mountain Base: -10℃, 15cm snowfall, light winds and snow. Moiwa 800m: -13℃, 20cm snowfall, cornice and snowdrift development, minor snowstorm. Annupuri 1100m: -14℃, 80cm snowdrift development, snowstorm, poor visibility. Hirafu 1200m: -14℃, strong winds, blizzard conditions, poor visibility. Coastal data, Benkei cape: NNW17m/s, Kamui cape: W10m/s, 1006hPa, 2.8m waves.
Currently we are under the influence of a winter weather pattern with isobars close together, cold air is flowing in, snow storm and poor visibility. Major snowdrift and cornice development above the tree line. Expect large cornice collapses from impact, Snowdrift development is moderate. Snow conditions are good but too deep in some locations. Cornice slopes and steep open slopes above 35deg expect the avalanche risk to increase during the morning. Dependant on weather conditions, peak gates are being prepared for opening today, Please respect the patrols decisions.
Visibility is poor so take it easy today. Also with the cold temps be careful of frostbite. Wear your helmet and turn your beacon on! Some creeks are still open, if you fall in and get wet, you will die. Be cautious and make smart route choices. Let's hope for no accidents.
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Planned ski area operations: Friday 31st December 2021
The below information is manually checked each morning and believed to be correct at time of report.
Niseko Grand Hirafu
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 255cm (no change)
- Base: 135cm (no change)
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 15cm
- Base: 15cm
Planned lift operations:
- 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
- Swinging Monkey
- King Number 4 (*maybe)
Planned open courses:
- All courses open
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Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 207cm (+2cm)
- Base: 150cm (+5cm)
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 15cm
- Base: 20cm
Planned lift operations:
- Hanazono Number 1
- Hanazono Number 2 quad
- Hanazono Number 3 quad
- Hanazono Symphony Gondola [* open for night skiing until 7:00pm]
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Niseko Annupuri
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 190cm (no change)
- Base: 130cm (no change)
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 10cm
- Base: 10cm
Planned lift operations:
- All lifts operating
- 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 open courses:
- All but one course are now open
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Niseko Village
Official snow depth (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 190cm no change
- Base: 130cm no change
Official 24 hours snowfall (reported by the ski area):
- Peak: 0cm
- Base: 0cm
Planned lift operations:
- Niseko Gondola
- Village Express
- Community Chair [* open for night skiing until 7:00pm]
- Banzai Chair
- Wonderland Chair
Niseko Now 2021-2022 season |
Data as of Friday 31st December 2021 Total snowfall at base so far 392cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 29 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 40cm (23rd December) November 2021 snowfall 85cm reported on 6 days December 2021 snowfall 307cm reported on 23 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.