Niseko Now: Tuesday 5th February 2019
- Feb 5, 2019
- 4 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 11cm
Snowfall at base this season 746cm
Posted on Tuesday 5th February 2019 This is an archived report. The latest Niseko Now report can be found here
Yesterday the weather was a bit mad once again. I am no fan of strong winds; there're just... annoying. The wind messed around with the lift operations on the mountain and checking out the evening news there was some silly warmth going on in Japan, particularly in the south. A mid season blip please.
Up here in Niseko I am happy to report that this morning is much more pleasingly cold and somewhat calmer (though not exactly 'calm'), and there's 11cm of fresh snowfall.
At the start of the day, just the Annupuri Gondola is not managing to get open and all other lifts appear to be planning on moving as planned. Hurray!
There's regular snow on the forecast in the coming week so let's hope we can get back into a nice mid-winter (but strong wind blizzard-avoiding) pattern.
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Niseko Avalanche Report:
Mountain Base 6.00am: -10°, 15cm new snow in the last 12hrs. Moiwa 800m: -13°,W7.8m/s, cornice and snowdrift development. Mikaeri Weather Station: -12°, major snowdrift development, forestry road buried. Annupuri 1120m: snow depth 220cm. Hirafu Peak: -16°, strong westerly wind, snowdrift development. Mizuno no Sawa: -14.72°, 10cm new snow in last 24hrs, mountain base snow depth 157cm. Suttsu Weather Station: -5.5°, max wind 2am WNW16.4m/s, snow depth 39cm. Kutchan Weather Station:- 7.6°, WNW17.5m/s at midnight, snow depth 160cm. Cape Benkei: NW16m/s, Cape Kamui: W12m/s, pressure 1019hPa, wave 3.7m.
A typical winter weather pattern continues and the mountain is experiencing blizzard conditions. From midnight the wind started to drop although it is still strong. Above 800m cornice and steep open leeward slopes, the avalanche risk continues from the Feb 4 low pressure snow layer. Especially above 1000m, snow drift stabilisation is delayed due to the low temperature and a deep fracture is possible from rider stimulation. If wind drops below 10m/s the snowdrifts will start to quickly consolidate and stabilise. Consider Osawa cornice and Backbowl sidewall dangerous today.
Snow in the trees is good but a bit wind packed. There is the possibility of shallow surface avalanches easily occurring on 40 deg slopes. Avalanches often occur during or right after a storm. Do not stimulate cornices or knolls. Do not wait in the valley bottoms. Gate openings yet to be decided. Please respect the patrols decisions. Is your beacon on? They are not compulsory but are recommended. Have a good day.
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Ski resort operation information: Tuesday 5th February 2019
Subject to change due to weather conditions
Niseko Grand Hirafu
Official snow depth (reported by resort):
- Peak: 345cm
- Base: 130cm
Ski lifts operating:
- All lifts opening as normal at the start of the day (Ace Number 1 pair and King Number 2 quad lifts rested)
- The Ace Family quad (until 8:30pm), Ace Center 4 quad (8:20pm), Hirafu Gondola (until 8:10pm) and Holiday Number 1 pair (until 8:30pm) lifts are normally open during the evening
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Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Official snow depth (reported by resort):
- Peak: 230cm
- Base: 195cm
Ski lifts operating:
- All lifts opening as normal at the start of the day
- The Hanazono lifts are normally open until 3:50pm (Number 3 until 3:30pm)
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Niseko Annupuri
Official snow depth (reported by resort):
- Peak: 300cm
- Base: 150cm
Ski lifts operating:
- The Gondola is on hold but other lifts open as planned at the start of the day
- The Jumbo 1 lift is normally open until 8:30pm during the evening
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Niseko Village
Official snow depth (reported by resort):
- Peak: 300cm
- Base: 160cm
Ski lifts operating:
- All lifts opening as normal at the start of the day (Country Road lift rested)
- The Upper Village Gondola, Village Express and Banzai Chair lifts are normally open until 8:00pm during the evening
Niseko Now 2018-2019 season |
Data as of Tuesday 5th February 2019 Total snowfall at base so far 746cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 64 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 32cm (29th December) November 2018 snowfall 84cm reported on 8 days December 2018 snowfall 333cm reported on 26 days January 2019 snowfall 285cm reported on 25 days February 2019 snowfall 44cm reported on 5 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.