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Zao Now: Thursday 2nd January 2020

  • Jan 2, 2020
  • 2 min read

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Zao region of Yamagata


New snowfall at base 4cm
Snowfall at base this season 67cm

Posted on Thursday 2nd January 2020 This is an archived report. The latest Zao Now report can be found here.


Good morning from Zao.


A little more snowfall down to base since yesterday, but again it's not significant with just a thin covering at base.


Higher up on the mountain the same areas remain open but it is still rather limited and a bit icy (rather than deep and fluffy), and it is worth noting that you still are not able to ski/board back down from the top summit area.


We probably take heavy snowfall too much for granted; perhaps we shouldn't. It is of course a worry, but what can we do. For the moment we just need to enjoy what we have got and hope for snow storms to come soon...



Zao Now 2019-2020 season

Data as of Thursday 2nd January 2020 Total snowfall at base 67cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 15 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 16cm (on 5th December) November 2019 snowfall 8cm observed on 3 days December 2019 snowfall 51cm observed on 10 days January 2020 snowfall 8cm observed on 2 days




All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Zao Onsen. 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.


SnowJapan is an entirely independent operation. Our daily reports are not posted on behalf of ski areas or any other business or organisation. Since first going online in 1999, the integrity of this website has always been our top priority, and it is something we are not prepared to compromise. All content is carefully created and written by humans who share a passion for the subject and what SnowJapan stands for.



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