Independent snow and weather reporting from the Madarao region of Nagano New snowfall at base 0cm Snowfall at base this season 99cm Weather overview Lovely morning Wind Light Temperature - Visibility Good Posted on Thursday 31st December 2015 This is an archived report. The latest Madarao Now report can be found here . It has turned into a beautiful morning. There's new snow to report. Blue skies and sun to report. I wish it were snowing, but if we can't have more snow just now this will do for this morning. And I certainly would not call it 'best condition' as I am hearing from elsewhere - if what we have now really is is 'best conditions', what do you call it when we have relentless snow over a period of a week and truly deep conditions? After some more snow that is expected tonight we can expect clearer skies again and (alas) a trend towards milder conditions. This is not just here but in the wider area (and lots of Japan in general?) Anyway, torchlit skiing and firewords should end the day today as we proceed into January. Here's to us delving deep into the goods that we know winter can provide - we have honestly only seen a hint of them so far this season... See you on the other side. Madarao Now 2015-2016 season Data as of Thursday 31st December 2015 Total snowfall at base 99cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 9 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 32cm (on 29th December) November 2015 snowfall 0cm December 2015 snowfall 99cm reported on 9 days Previous report Next report All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Madarao. 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. About SnowJapan.com About the daily reporting on SnowJapan.com

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Madarao region of Nagano New snowfall at base 4cm Snowfall at base this season 122cm Weather overview Lovely morning Wind Light Temperature - Visibility Good Posted on Wednesday 6th January 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Madarao Now report can be found here . There is some fresh snow to report this morning from Madarao. Just 4cm outside my place and Madarao Kogen is this morning stating 5-10cm of fresh on the slopes. Better than 0cm! It is colder as well this morning. There's quite a lot of cloud around but also some blue skies. More snow is on the way with the weekly forecast still tempting us with the promise of snow tonight and tomorrow, as we get into the weekend and Sunday/Monday as well. I like the looks of 'moderate snowfall' on the forecast; 'heavy snow' is even better. Let's hope it happens. For now that new snowfall has probably filled over a few patches but of course not enough to transform the situation. Madarao Now 2015-2016 season Data as of Wednesday 6th January 2016 Total snowfall at base 122cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 11 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 32cm (on 29th December) November 2015 snowfall 0cm December 2015 snowfall 99cm reported on 9 days January 2016 snowfall 23cm reported on 2 days Previous report Next report All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Madarao. 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. About SnowJapan.com About the daily reporting on SnowJapan.com

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Madarao region of Nagano New snowfall at base 0cm Snowfall at base this season 384cm Weather overview Cloudy Wind Light Temperature - Visibility Fair Posted on Monday 29th February 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Madarao Now report can be found here . It is a cloudy early start to this Monday morning after a weekend of mild temperatures and fine weather. Mild conditions continue this morning and it's going to be interesting to see what happens today and tomorrow... Different forecasts have different versions of what is about to happen, but I am inclined to believe the one that says it will first rain and then the rain will turn into snow and get much colder. And I definitely want to believe that we will get heavy snow overnight! Once we get onto the other side of this coming snow storm, around Wednesday, things are going to clear up again and warm up a lot as well once we get to next weekend. So we really need and want as much fresh snow as possible please! Madarao Kogen lifts operating (planned at time of writing): All lifts plan to be open today Tangram Ski Circus lifts operating (planned at time of writing): All lifts plan to be open today Tree Run Courses open at Madarao Kogen: Powder Wave II Powder Theater Ninja Crystal Bowl Kamoshika Sawa Madarao Now 2015-2016 season Data as of Monday 29th February 2016 Total snowfall at base 384cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 35 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 32cm (on 29th December and 10th February) November 2015 snowfall 0cm December 2015 snowfall 99cm reported on 9 days January 2016 snowfall 161cm reported on 15 days February 2016 snowfall 124cm reported on 11 days Previous report Next report All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Madarao. 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. About SnowJapan.com About the daily reporting on SnowJapan.com

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Madarao region of Nagano New snowfall at base 7cm Snowfall at base this season 384cm Weather overview Light snow Wind Light Temperature - Visibility Fair Posted on Thursday 25th February 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Madarao Now report can be found here . Nice conditions to enjoy yesterday morning and this morning there's another 7cm of snow here at base and Madarao Kogen are reporting 5-10cm of fresh snowfall on the slopes. It is currently cold and snowing lightly though we're not really expecting much more in terms of snowfall today. It should be snowing lightly again tomorrow and Saturday, perhaps on and off rather than a sustained snowfall. Slightly higher temperatures are also expected over the weekend but hopefully not by too much. Forecasts seem to be showing decent snow expected on Monday as well to finish off the month of February. Madarao Now 2015-2016 season Data as of Thursday 25th February 2016 Total snowfall at base 384cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 35 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 32cm (on 29th December and 10th February) November 2015 snowfall 0cm December 2015 snowfall 99cm reported on 9 days January 2016 snowfall 161cm reported on 15 days February 2016 snowfall 124cm reported on 11 days Previous report Next report All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Madarao. 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. About SnowJapan.com About the daily reporting on SnowJapan.com

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Madarao region of Nagano New snowfall at base 18cm Snowfall at base this season 377cm Weather overview Snow Wind Light Temperature - Visibility Good Posted on Wednesday 24th February 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Madarao Now report can be found here . Great news this morning and something of a surprise. I measure 18cm of fresh snowfall here at base this morning and Madarao Kogen is this morning reporting 20-25cm of fresh snow since yesterday on the mountain. Very nice. The mountain should feel very refreshed this morning... Early morning snow expected to ease off completely by later this morning leaving us with a cloudy day. If the forecast is right for more snow on Friday, conditions should be good for the weekend. Bring it on! Madarao Now 2015-2016 season Data as of Wednesday 24th February 2016 Total snowfall at base 377cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 34 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 32cm (on 29th December and 10th February) November 2015 snowfall 0cm December 2015 snowfall 99cm reported on 9 days January 2016 snowfall 161cm reported on 15 days February 2016 snowfall 117cm reported on 10 days Previous report Next report All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Madarao. 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. About SnowJapan.com About the daily reporting on SnowJapan.com

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Madarao region of Nagano New snowfall at base 3cm Snowfall at base this season 432cm Weather overview Cloud, snow easing off Wind Light Temperature - Visibility OK to limited Posted on Thursday 10th March 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Madarao Now report can be found here . Morning from Madarao and it's looking more like winter again with snow hanging on the trees and that white-silver look we love so much. Not a huge amount of fresh snow with the resort reporting 3cm since yesterday (mostly during the day, with just a dusting more overnight), but we'll take it and enjoy it. Very light snow falling early on this morning with a generally cloudy day expected today. It's quite cold this morning too. Let's take a look at the forecast. Actually, take a look here: Snow and weather forecast: 6 day snow and weather forecast for Madarao Kogen Madarao Kogen lifts operating (planned at time of writing): All lifts plan to be open today Tangram Ski Circus lifts operating (planned at time of writing): All lifts plan to be open today Tree Run Courses open at Madarao Kogen: Open Madarao Now 2015-2016 season Data as of Thursday 10th March 2016 Total snowfall at base 432cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 38 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 38cm (on 1st March) November 2015 snowfall 0cm December 2015 snowfall 99cm reported on 9 days January 2016 snowfall 161cm reported on 15 days February 2016 snowfall 124cm reported on 11 days March 2016 snowfall 48cm reported on 3 days Previous report Next report All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Madarao. 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. About SnowJapan.com About the daily reporting on SnowJapan.com

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Madarao region of Nagano New snowfall at base 2cm Snowfall at base this season 435cm Weather overview Cloud and some blue sky Wind Light Temperature - Visibility Good Posted on Saturday 12th March 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Madarao Now report can be found here . Early on this morning there was a lot of fog around but now the lifts are spinning it has lifted leaving us with a good view of the frosty looking mountain. There has been a few cm of fresh snow since yesterday and it's a cold and calm morning. The groomers are looking inviting and I believe all of the courses and tree runs should be open as normal. Still the chance of a bit of fresh snowfall tomorrow though I wouldn't expect much from it; it should be remaining cold though. Warmer conditions are forecast for mid-week. For now though a good cold morning to get some sliding done. Have a good Saturday wherever you are. Madarao Now 2015-2016 season Data as of Saturday 12th March 2016 Total snowfall at base 435cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 40 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 38cm (on 1st March) November 2015 snowfall 0cm December 2015 snowfall 99cm reported on 9 days January 2016 snowfall 161cm reported on 15 days February 2016 snowfall 124cm reported on 11 days March 2016 snowfall 51cm reported on 5 days Previous report Next report All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Madarao. 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. About SnowJapan.com About the daily reporting on SnowJapan.com

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Madarao region of Nagano New snowfall at base 14cm Snowfall at base this season 449cm Weather overview Snow Wind Moderate Temperature - Visibility Limited Posted on Tuesday 15th March 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Madarao Now report can be found here . Great news this morning! Wintery conditions with snow falling and a bit of a wind blowing... and Madarao Kogen reporting 15-20cm of fresh snowfall! And a decent layer on top of the car here near base as well... Can't say that I was expecting that! Not much to see at the moment. The snow is expected to ease off by around lunchtime and then the skies should start clearing up leaving us with lots of sunshine for most of the rest of the week. Tomorrow should be a good day to be here if you can! Temperatures are still forecast to get warmer from tomorrow possibly rising to around 10 degrees and perhaps slightly above on Friday, before getting colder again after that. (Not much in terms of potential snow on the forecast though unfortunately). Madarao Now 2015-2016 season Data as of Tuesday 15th March 2016 Total snowfall at base 449cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 41 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 38cm (on 1st March) November 2015 snowfall 0cm December 2015 snowfall 99cm reported on 9 days January 2016 snowfall 161cm reported on 15 days February 2016 snowfall 124cm reported on 11 days March 2016 snowfall 65cm reported on 6 days Previous report Next report All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Madarao. 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. About SnowJapan.com About the daily reporting on SnowJapan.com

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Madarao region of Nagano New snowfall at base 0cm Snowfall at base this season 449cm Weather overview Cloud, fine Wind Light Temperature - Visibility Good Posted on Friday 18th March 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Madarao Now report can be found here . It was a fine - and warm - day yesterday. There's some cloud up at the start of the day but blue sky as well and we're expecting another warm spring day in the region. Rain is likely something soon, either starting later on today or early tomorrow morning - there's a fairly high chance though that it will be wet for Saturday. Sunday should be clearer, and colder too, and so is the choice of the days over the weekend. Madarao Now 2015-2016 season Data as of Friday 18th March 2016 Total snowfall at base 449cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 41 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 38cm (on 1st March) November 2015 snowfall 0cm December 2015 snowfall 99cm reported on 9 days January 2016 snowfall 161cm reported on 15 days February 2016 snowfall 124cm reported on 11 days March 2016 snowfall 65cm reported on 6 days Previous report Next report All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Madarao. 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. About SnowJapan.com About the daily reporting on SnowJapan.com

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Madarao region of Nagano New snowfall at base 0cm Snowfall at base this season 483cm Weather overview Fine Wind Light Temperature - Visibility Excellent Posted on Friday 1st April 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Madarao Now report can be found here . Good morning from Madarao Kogen. Yesterday we enjoyed some fine weather on what was the last day of the 2015-2016 season for Madarao Kogen (neighbouring Tangram Ski Circus is open through until Sunday). And this will be my last report of the 2015-2016 season. Once a season gets started, it really does flash by way too quickly - mostly from having so much fun, though this season there were other things going on… things that we really are not used to! It has definitely been something of a unique season for this region and indeed many areas of Japan. This season definitely ‘wins’ the unwanted award for ‘the least snow during a season’ of recent times at least, and locals of quite an age will also be hard pushed to remember a season with as little snowfall as during 2015-2016. There was of course snow – and indeed in amounts that some ski resorts in other parts of the world would be glad to get. And I have enjoyed some very fine days this last season, and I know lots of other people who have visited and had a great time. The difference this last season has been that there just wasn’t much of that full-on, almost overwhelmingly heavy and consistent snowfall that we are used to (and so love) in this region. Yes, we are usually spoilt; but we like being spoilt! ‘Less snow’ was not just an issue for this part of northern Nagano Prefecture either with most ski resort areas of the main island of Honshu receiving less snow than usual in this ‘danto’ (or ‘mild winter’). Here’s the amount of snow that I have observed over the past three seasons here in Madarao: 2015-2016 season: 483cm total 2014-2015 season: 1055cm total 2013-2014 season: 734cm total As you can see, this season I observed less than half of the total amount of snow that I did last season. That’s pretty significant, even considering that last year was quite famous for being one of particularly abundant snowfall. The season before we still got about 1.5 times the amount of snow that we did this season. Just going back to that comment about ‘being spoilt’. We’re not used to worrying about snowfall – it just falls, and usually in huge amounts - but this season everyone was, and it was a constant topic of conversation throughout the season. It has to be said that the resort did an excellent job in keeping open and the slopes in decent condition until the end of March as originally planned.. helped along by a decent amount of March snowfall (more than in March last year actually!), and of course lots of hard work and effort. Otsukaresama deshita! I think the main point to take from this season wrap report is this... If you are reading researching about Madarao Kogen - and indeed any of the other regions covered in the reports on SnowJapan - please do take the time to look back at previous seasons to get an idea of what is ‘normal’ or ‘average’. Because 2015/2016 was certainly not ‘normal’ or ‘average’. Let’s hope we get back to normal next season. I’m confident we will! In the meantime, I hope you have a great spring and summer and I hope to see you back here in late autumn. Madarao Now 2015-2016 season Data as of Friday 1st April 2016 Total snowfall at base 483cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 46 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 38cm (on 1st March) November 2015 snowfall 0cm December 2015 snowfall 99cm reported on 9 days January 2016 snowfall 161cm reported on 15 days February 2016 snowfall 124cm reported on 11 days March 2016 snowfall 99cm reported on 11 days Previous report All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Madarao. 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. About SnowJapan.com About the daily reporting on SnowJapan.com

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Madarao region of Nagano New snowfall at base 1cm Snowfall at base this season 222cm Weather overview Light snow Wind Light Temperature - Visibility Fair Posted on Friday 22nd January 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Madarao Now report can be found here . Not really much to report in terms of new snowfall since yesterdays report, just a dusting I would say but this morning light snow continues to fall. Visibility is generally pretty good at the moment though with just the very top of the mountain covered with cloud. Not much snow is expected today, just light snow at times, but heavy snow is expected over the weekend. Timing for that would seem to be later on tomorrow (night) and through Sunday maybe into Monday as well. It might get windy on Sunday as well. Fingers crossed we do get that 'heavy snow'. Would be great to get the other Tree Runs open at Madarao. I see that they were doing a 'renew' of the park at Madarao last night and apparently there's two new kickers (5m and 3m) as well as a wide box. Madarao Now 2015-2016 season Data as of Friday 22nd January 2016 Total snowfall at base 222cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 20 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 32cm (on 29th December) November 2015 snowfall 0cm December 2015 snowfall 99cm reported on 9 days January 2016 snowfall 123cm reported on 11 days Previous report Next report All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Madarao. 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. About SnowJapan.com About the daily reporting on SnowJapan.com

Independent snow and weather reporting from the Madarao region of Nagano New snowfall at base 5cm Snowfall at base this season 127cm Weather overview Snow Wind Light Temperature - Visibility Limited Posted on Thursday 7th January 2016 This is an archived report. The latest Madarao Now report can be found here . Yesterday I said we were hoping for snow overnight, and we have had some. Just another 5cm so far but it is still snowing now and hopefully it should be for the day and then more over the coming days as well. So conditions should be getting better each day now through into the weekend. That's all I will say for this morning. Lots of snow please... Madarao Now 2015-2016 season Data as of Thursday 7th January 2016 Total snowfall at base 127cm Number of days snowfall observed at base 12 days Most snowfall observed in 1 day 32cm (on 29th December) November 2015 snowfall 0cm December 2015 snowfall 99cm reported on 9 days January 2016 snowfall 28cm reported on 3 days Previous report Next report All snowfall data presented on this page is the snowfall measured and observed at base/town level by our reporter based in Madarao. 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. About SnowJapan.com About the daily reporting on SnowJapan.com