Niseko Now: Tuesday 6th December 2016
- Dec 6, 2016
- 4 min read
Updated: Dec 2, 2025
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 6cm
Snowfall at base this season 123cm
Posted on Tuesday 6th December 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Niseko Now report can be found here
This is a bit more like it.
It is colder this morning and importantly there's 6cm of fresh snow outside my place here near Hirafu base. The temperature is currently slightly above 0C but we are actually expecting it to get colder as the day goes on.
Strong winds may well affect lifts throughout the day, and I have posted the latest on that situation below.
The forecast is looking very nice at the moment too, so here's to lots of fresh snowfall in the coming week. On and off by the looks of it rather than a full-on non-stop extravaganza but we'll see... bring it on, I say!
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Frequently asked question answered:
"Why don't you post the reports earlier?"
I probably usually spend about 30 minutes or so on this report every day. Sometimes it is a bit less than that and sometimes it is much more – it depends on what is happening at the time and what there is to report. The first lifts at the ski resorts in Niseko start moving at 8:30am and it is around that time when it becomes clear if there might be any interruptions or changes to plans. Early morning weather often changes quickly too – from the time I get up to when I am about the post my report. As such I usually try and get my report posted at around that time.
It sounds like some people would like earlier reports but if I posted them earlier I wouldn’t have that up-to-date information at the time when the resorts open. And, I’d have to get up earlier. As dedicated as I am to these reports, I also need my beauty sleep and there’s a few things I need to do before settling down to report duties.
If you are in Niseko and need to know what the weather is doing before my report time… I suggest looking outside the window! Joking aside, I see each of these reports as one piece of an ongoing commentary of the season, rather than something that is aimed exclusively at people who are in Niseko and checking the weather before rushing off for first lifts.
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A thank you to the kind people who sent me a message regarding the comments I made in my report yesterday. I wasn’t angling for comments, honest! Always appreciated, thank you. I will gambarimasu as much as possible and be particularly excited, when appropriate of course.
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What is planned to be open today?
8:30am update - the lifts at Annupuri are on standby at the start of the day due to strong winds. The other planned lifts appear to be starting the day as planned.
Niseko Grand Hirafu & Hanazono
Lifts planned to be operating:
- Ace Family Pair
- Ace Number 2 Center Four
- Ace Number 3 pair
- Hirafu Gondola
- King Number 3 triple
- Swinging Monkey
- Hanazono 1 quad
- Hanazono 2 quad
- Hanazono 3 quad
Courses planned to be open:
- Family
- Beginners access course
- Shirakaba course
- Center course
- Jumbo course
- Parallel course
- Silver Dream (experts only)
- Yotei Sunset
Niseko Annupuri
Lifts planned to be operating:
- Jumbo Number 3 pair
- Annupuri Gondola
Courses planned to be operating:
- Utopia
Niseko Village
Lifts planned to be operating:
- Community Chair
- Upper Village Gondola
- Village Express (used as a connection)
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Official resort snow depths as of Tuesday 6th December 2016:
Niseko Grand Hirafu
Top - 105cm
Base - 35cm
Niseko Village
Top - 30cm
Base - 10cm
Niseko Annupuri
Top - 55cm
Base - 30cm
Niseko Now 2016-2017 season |
Data as of Tuesday 6th December 2016 Total snowfall at base so far 123cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 17 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 25cm (25th November) November 2016 snowfall 110cm reported on 14 days December 2016 snowfall 13cm reported on 3 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.