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Niseko’s Winter – Strike III and out?

Simon — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 02:47:16 +0000

Just off the mountain, great runs on Niseko Annupuri in the backbowls. After 4 days of cold snowy-ish weather 20cm had accumulated on a firm base with some deeper wind blown stashes. Really can’t complain being the 25th of March.

Is this the last of it or not? will check the weather and download the photo’s and get back to with some shots and the week’s weather outloook.

In Hokkaido

Joel — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 14:30:07 +0000

As last weeks warmer weather showed us spring is on the way, but as you can see from Simon’s photo’s the winter still has some bite left. The snow arrived just in time for the weekend and word on the street was that Rusutsu had some great snow.Unfortunately being the weekend and due to a rumored lift outage it had to be shared among quite a few, not bad for the middle of March though.

Speaking of weekends another one of Japans frequent public holidays is looming, this one celebrating the spring equinox, great news for the working folk!! And what better way to celebrate a holiday than with a party. The good people from S.P.I.N. and A.Life Sapporo are putting on an international party so after the day on the couch or the hill come out for a nite on the town.
See ya there!
http://alife.jp/pc/schedule/200903.html
www.myspace.com/sappororythm

Niseko Winter – Strike 2

Simon — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 03:17:48 +0000

Well, we got another taste of winter on Saturday night making yesterday pretty good on the mountain. Searching the mountain for pockets of powder I managed to snap this shot. Is winter ever going to end?

Niseko nights after another blast of winter

The First Snowfall 2

Simon — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:34:32 +0000

Every year when it snows for the first time and the landscape is covered in this magnificent blanket of white I am amazed at how different things can look. Almost nothing else can compare to this as mother nature paints the ground white and finishes its work of art with small dabs of snow in trees, on top on fences and in amongst everything else. Then the final autumn leave fall and the sun pokes out form behind the storm and yes it is spectacular.

As the winter season continues the landscape changes even more and that once quite distinguishable intersection is now indistinguishable and you are in a quite a different place. I guess that is the beauty of living in a place where the 4 season are so varied, but more on this later…

Cabbage flowers on the roadside in Niseko

A house in Sapporo

Anticipation

Joel — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 09:30:45 +0000

It doesn’t matter where you are in the world pre season anticipation is the same in resort destinations from Wanaka to Whistler, Niseko to Nigata. The weather gets colder and little by little the snow line creeps down the mountain. Talk around town revolves around last seasons highlights,weather,global warming, Jobs, ski resort developments and opening day.

There is also the ineviatable banter that grows most intense at the bar, this banter revolves around ego and optimism. Individuals will boast and claim how many days they are going to spend on the hill, runs they will conquer, tricks they will do, how many beers they will drink, how fast they will go and how good their new gear is. This inescapable talk will often be heard coming from those newest to town as they as they strive to find a seat at the bar for themselves and their ego. Of course seasoned locals can be found equally guilty of such claiming and their claims often stray further from the truth every year they stay in town!

Remarkably such claiming tends to stop as soon as the mountain opens and you will see the guy who boasted about his new ski gear sitting in the cafe rubbing his feet as he tries to break in his new boots. All the pre season claims will soon be lost in the powder and the anticipation shared by a whole town just hours before melts away as your swept up by the first chair of winter.