Niseko Now: Monday 8th February 2016
- Feb 8, 2016
- 3 min read
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Niseko region of Hokkaido
New snowfall at base 12cm
Snowfall at base this season 712cm
Posted on Monday 8th February 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Niseko Now report can be found here
Good morning from Niseko and a very happy Chinese New Year to everyone who is celebrating it. I don't want to make a mistake with the words I use, and so please accept it in English!
Unfortunately, the top lifts were affected by wind yesterday afternoon. Here's how the day played out around the mountain for those interested in knowing how these things play out:
Niseko Annupuri - the top Jumbo number 4 lift stopped around 11:30am to be joined by the Gondola and Jumbo Number 3 lifts just before 2pm leaving us with just the lower two lifts operating.
Niseko Village - the top Wonderland lift was halted just after 11:30am and then the Gondola operating at reduced speeds to be stopped at around 3pm.
Niseko Grand Hirafu - the top King Number 4 and Ace Number 4 lifts stopped moving around noon with the King Number 3 lift also stopped mid afternoon.
As far as I can tell, all of the three Hanazono lifts made it through the day, even if the top one was moving at reduced speeds.
And so much for the 'possible clearing up' mentioned in my report as well - a few moments of some blue sky here and there, but generally cloudy and snowy - and really snowing heavily at times.
So once again after some impressive snowfall, I have a good 12cm of fresh snowfall to report.
What's more, as expected it's a really beautiful morning. The sun is out, there are beautiful blue skies all around and it seems fairly calm so I would expect everywhere to be opening as normal this morning.
Fresh snow overnight and beautiful weather - I don't think I'll ever say it's perfect (after all, 30+cm of fresh would have been better!), but it's pretty ideal.
I'm a big fan of the overnight snow followed by clear skies pattern so if you don't mind, I am going to treat myself to an early start this morning. I hope to see some of you out there.
Have a great day.
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Niseko Avalanche Report:
Niseko base 5am: -8℃, scarce snowfall, snowdrifts development and calm. Moiwa 800m: -11℃, W5m/s, 15cm snowfall with 50cm snowdrifts in knolls. Mikaeri 740m: -11.2℃, WSW0.9m/s, 20cm snowfall, 50cm snowdrifts. Annupuri 1150m: -13℃, SW12m/s, 10cm snowfall with snowdrifts development. Hirafu peak ridge: -12℃, 30cm snowfall, light snowdrifts on-piste. Benkei cape: NW6m/s, Kamui cape: NNW4m/s, 1017hPa, 1.7m waves.
Beautiful calm morning in a high-pressure system. The snow & wind ceased late night and the newly formed slabs are stabilizing. Looking at observations and snowfall transitions, the avalanche risk in areas below 1000m is lowering, however highly wind-affected wide-open steep slopes loaded with snowdrifts above 1200m are still unstable and surface slab slides from Feb 7th layer are to be highly considered. All gates are scheduled to open from the morning.
Stepping out of the gate is stepping out of the resort management. Many hazard are present out there, always be prudent. The snow in the trees is in good shape. Beware of falling in cracks or creeks. Have a nice day.
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Official resort snow depths as of Monday 8th February 2016:
Niseko Grand Hirafu & Hanazono
Top - 355cm
Base - 170cm
Niseko Village
Top - 310cm
Base - 180cm
Niseko Annupuri
Top - 315cm
Base - 180cm
Niseko Now 2015-2016 season |
Data as of Monday 8th February 2016 Total snowfall at base so far 712cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 55 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 31cm (17th January) November 2015 snowfall 61cm reported on 4 days December 2015 snowfall 244cm reported on 17 days January 2016 snowfall 303cm reported on 26 days February 2016 snowfall 104cm reported on 8 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.