Yuzawa Now: Sunday 1st March 2026
- Mar 1
- 4 min read
Updated: 10 hours ago
Independent snow and weather reporting from the Yuzawa & Minamiuonuma region of Niigata
New snowfall at base 0cm
Snowfall at base this seas 883cm
Posted on Sunday 1st March 2026 This is an archived report. The latest Yuzawa Now report can be found here.
Good morning from Yuzawa.
I, for one, am rather pleased that yesterday is over and we can try to start again in this new month.
It was pretty miserable weather yesterday, not that I ventured outside much. (I wonder if any higher areas might have had some kind of snow since yesterday, but no ski areas are reporting anything).
This morning we have a mix of cloud and blue sky and forecasts seem to indicate that the sun might win the day and we should get clearer skies. There is already a bit of sun in places. Clearer weather due tomorrow too.
The Prince Number 1 gondola and Takenokoyama lifts are not operating at Naeba due to avalanche risk.
I was looking back at snowfall stats from previous seasons. Our snowfall for the season currently is at 883cm and I was quite surprised at how big that number seemed. It doesn't feel as though there has been as much as that this season. It just goes to show how it's not just how much snow falls, but it's when it falls and a whole lot of other conditions (temps, rain, wind, etc). One thing is for sure and that is after the wonderful 549cm of snowfall last February, February 2026 wasn't very snowy - particularly the second half. Only 19cm of snowfall has been observed since 14th February; that's really poor. The total for the month was just 132cm and that is one of the lowest showings for February since our records began in 2012.
So here we are in March, a month that is traditionally unpredictable. The Yuzawa Now reported snowfall numbers for the month of March have varied from 9cm to 191cm. (191cm sounds great!)
There are still signs of some snow on forecasts from around 8th March and maybe some light stuff at higher elevations before then. It remains to be seen if it might be enough to make any difference to the big picture.
After all that, it's important to point out that there's still a lot of fun to be had - spring skiing can be fun. It's just... we still want to hold on to winter skiing!
Generally, as you might expect, better snow conditions found the higher up you go.
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GALA Yuzawa
Official snow depth (reported by ski area):
190cm
Notes:
The Northern Area connection with Ishiuchi Maruyama and the Southern Area (Ropeway) connection with Yuzawa Kogen are both open
Special night skiing is planned for 14th, 21st, 28th March and 4th April
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Ishiuchi Maruyama
Official snow depth (reported by ski area):
170cm
Notes:
The top connection with the Northern Area of GALA Yuzawa is now open
Daily floodlit night skiing until 28th February and then Fridays and Saturdays until 28th March (until 8:00pm)
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Iwappara
Official snow depth (reported by ski area):
135cm
Notes:
Daily floodlit night skiing until 28th March (until 7:00pm on weekdays and Sundays, until 8:00pm on Saturdays and nights before holidays)
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Joetsu Kokusai
Official snow depth (reported by ski area):
170cm
Notes:
Daily floodlit night skiing until 22nd March (until 9:00pm)
The Atema and Osawa base car parks (and associated runs) are scheduled to be open on weekends only
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Kagura
Official snow depth:
Top: 300cm
Base: 220cm
Notes:
Both Ropeway bases open as normal
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Kandatsu Snow Resort
Official snow depth:
160cm
Notes:
Floodlit night skiing on Fridays, Saturdays and nights before holidays until 28th March (until 2:00am the next morning)
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Maiko Snow Resort
Official snow depth:
215cm
Notes:
Floodlit night skiing on Saturdays and Sundays until 14th March (until 8:00pm on Saturdays and 7:00pm on Sundays)
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Muikamachi Hakkaisan
Official snow depth:
Top: 280cm
Base: 150cm
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Naeba
Official snow depth:
Top: 220cm
Base: 170cm
Notes:
Tanenokoyama pair lift and Prince Number 1 gondola not operating due to avalanche danger
Daily floodlit night skiing until 21st March (until 8:30pm)
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NASPA Ski Garden
Official snow depth:
150cm
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Yuzawa Kogen
Official snow depth:
Top: 180cm
Base: 90cm
Notes:
The upper Kogen area and base area are both open
The Ropeway connection with the Southern Area of GALA Yuzawa is now open
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Yuzawa Nakazato Snow Resort
Official snow depth:
160cm
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Yuzawa Park
Official snow depth:
120cm
Yuzawa Now2025-2026 season |
Data as of Sunday 1st March 2026 Total snowfall at base so far 883cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 46 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 68cm (on 25th January) November 2025 snowfall 12cm reported on 1 day December 2025 snowfall 144cm reported on 9 days January 2026 snowfall 595cm reported on 23 days February 2026 snowfall 132cm reported on 13 days March 2026 snowfall 0cm |
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.