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Zao Now: Saturday 6th December 2014

  • Dec 6, 2014
  • 2 min read

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Zao region of Yamagata


New snowfall at base 4cm
Snowfall at base this season 148cm

Posted on Saturday 6th December 2014 This is an archived report. The latest Zao Now report can be found here.


It's Saturday 6th and the day of the official opening of the resort here, with the ceremony to be held on the Uwanodai area by the base centre at 11am. Prayers for safety will be made. And no doubt mochi will make some kind of appearance as well as some 'characters'.


What's even more interesting than that is the fact that more of the resort is opening up this morning. 6 lifts plan to be moving as well as the usual ropeways and gondolas, and here they are:


Onsen Number 1 pair lift

Mikaeri pair lift

Chuo pair lift

Paradise pair lift

Yokokura Number 1 pair lift

Utopia Number 2 pair lift


So basically we have 3 areas of the resort open - part of the base Uwanodai and Yokokura areas and the higher Paradise area.


Snow clouds look set to be with us today before easing tomorrow.


I think we can definitely say it is a very good start to the season. We're set for a good one, let's hope it continues.


Official snow depths:

Utopia: 130cm

Chuo: 80cm

Paradise: 80cm

Uwanodai: 80cm



Zao Now 2014-2015 season

Data as of Saturday 6th December 2014 Total snowfall at base 148cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 7 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 80cm (on 3rd December) November 2014 snowfall 20cm observed on 2 days December 2014 snowfall 128cm observed on 5 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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