Yuzawa Now: Thursday 1st January 2026
- Jan 1, 2026
- 3 min read
Updated: 10 hours ago
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Yuzawa & Minamiuonuma region of Niigata
New snowfall at base 13cm
Snowfall at base this seas 169cm
Posted on Thursday 1st January 2026 This is an archived report. The latest Yuzawa Now report can be found here.
Good morning from Yuzawa and a happy new year to all readers and friends of SnowJapan.
We have a layer of fresh snow on the ground this morning. Hurray!
But first let me rewind a bit. We were expecting snow during the day yesterday but, once again, we ended up with something different. We got extended periods of blue sky and sunshine while it was snowing in northern regions of Niigata. That has been known to happen, but it's pretty frustrating when you are yearning for the fluffy stuff. Forecasts all told us to expect snow, but that only started to happen later on in higher elevations (with some rain lower down) and then turning properly into snow overnight.
OK so this morning it is snowing. The new snowfall measurement for the morning, as of 9am, is 13cm.
It's not a massive amount, but very welcome all the same and much needed out on the slopes. More of a plaster than a full recovery.
Ski areas are still in 'part open' status and the snow depth numbers are all still low (very low at some). So we want much more and a good old consistent Snow Country-style storm would be perfect.
Forecasts promise snow clouds to be with us and bringing us that precious snow across the next several days, so the numbers should be increasing steadily - and hopefully quickly at times.
Let's have it!
The top Kagura Number 5 pair lift opens from this morning. That lift is open from 9:30am through 12 noon.
Quite a long way from Yuzawa, but congratulations to Budoh Ski Area up in the northern part of Niigata Prefecture. It has closed at the end of last season, with the ski lifts due to be removed, but a company came in and saved it. That ski area opens this morning under the name 'Budoh Snow Resorts' (curiously plural on official stuff). You can of course find it on SnowJapan!
Yuzawa Now2025-2026 season |
Data as of Thursday 1st January 2026 Total snowfall at base so far 169cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 11 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 45cm (on 27th December) November 2025 snowfall 12cm reported on 1 day December 2025 snowfall 144cm reported on 9 days January 2026 snowfall 13cm reported on 1 day |
All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Yuzawa. 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.