Base up top: 330 cm Temp Top; -8 Degrees Base at bottom; 215 cm New Snow since close: 50 cm Weather; Heavy snow Welcome to 2015 from Nozawa Onsen! Partying into the new year in style with festivities about the village including night skiing under fireworks on the Nagasaka slope and sake flowing strong into the night. There is sure to be a few sore heads this morning! Those who held back will be rewarded by feeling fresh and ready to tackle the 50cm of snow that fell overnight. The first day of 2015 is sure to be a good one in Nozawa Onsen with that deep dry powder Japan is world renowned for blanketed across the mountain, […]
Latest News
Clearing Fog Today
Base up top: 285 cm Temp Top; -3 Degrees Base at bottom; 175 cm New Snow since close: 10-20 cm Weather; Fog Its another foggy morning in Nozawa Onsen today. We had a patch of blue sky before the sea mist once again rolled up the valley and engulfed the resort. There is definitely an air of anticipation about the resort regarding tonights expected dump and new years events. There will be both night skiing with fireworks, highly recommended. There will also be some more traditional events in the temple district of town, with free sake tasting. Hopefully this fog clears off soon, the forecast suggests it will and if so there will be some great riding about […]
Fog and Light Snow
Base up top: 290 cm Temp Top; -4 Degrees Base at bottom; 180 cm New Snow since close: 10 cm Weather; Fog Heavy fog has enveloped the village of Nozawa Onsen this morning inducing a definitive maritime atmosphere about the mountain. Squashed between an inversion layer, it should hopefully clear with an increased wind speed later in the day. Best skiing will be had on tree lined groomed runs where points of focus will improve depth perception. At the moment elevations between 1000-1400m are sandwiched in a clear layer so these altitudes offer the best visibility at this time. Yesterday was a similar story with low fog limiting visibility and light snow showers in upper areas. Again, the […]
Nozawa Pillow Factory
Base up top: 295 cm Temp Top; -2 Degrees Base at bottom; 190 cm New Snow since close: 5 cm Weather; Light snow Looks like we have some light isolated snow showers across the region this morning. With a less than ideal wind direction, amounts will be fickle compared to forecasted totals but expect these isolated falls to continue all day. We have had five centimetres of fresh fall across the upper half of the mountain, sure to produce some quality riding in most areas such as Yamabiko. I think its safe to say we can add yesterday to the steadily increasing list of superb days so far this season. Deep fresh powder was still available in the early […]
Picture Perfect Day
Base up top: 300 cm Temp Top; -5 Degrees Base at bottom; 215 cm New Snow since close: 0 cm Weather; Clear We woke to a perfect sunny morning, the first truly spectacular morning of the season so far. Views over to the Myoko volcano were something that had to be seen to be believed with an intense alpenglow radiating off the peak in the early morning light. With the depth and quality of snow we have in Nozawa Onsen at the moment, the riding will sure to be top notch. Make sure you pack the cameras to capture the views from the summit! Yesterday was so so epic. Deep perfect snow. Amazing. Again, the best day of the […]
Best day of the season
Base up top: 330 cm Temp Top; -9 Degrees Base at bottom; 215 cm New Snow since close: 30 cm Weather; Snow How many best runs of the season can you have? If you were to say one, you’d be wrong as this line was dropped more than a few times yesterday. Deep blower dry pow is what we all came here for and it was delivered in ample amounts on Boxing Day as moderate to heavy snowfalls continued from first to last lifts. The winds were also lighter than expected. Epic, just epic. The bets are in that skiing and boarding should be similar to yesterday, perhaps even better as skies are forecast to clear and winds drop […]
Nozawa gets Buried
Base up top: 310 cm Temp Top; -8 Degrees Base at bottom; 215 cm New Snow since close: 75 cm Weather; Snow Ok, this winter in Nozawa Onsen is getting ridiculous for big dumps. Just another 75 cm overnight, pushing storm totals well over a meter and a half. I hope you all had an awesome Christmas. A bit of a repetitive statement so far, but yesterday was one of the best days of the season. Light, deep powder that challenged worlds arid zones for its dryness. Faceshots were the order for the day, the real issue was avoiding them to maintain a path of visibility. Today should be similar to Christmas day, albeit with stronger winds forecast […]
A 20cm Christmas Present
Base up top: 250 cm Temp Top; -5 Degrees Base at bottom; 180 cm New Snow since close: 20 cm Weather; Snow Merry Christmas to all! The snow gods have rewarded us with a fresh dump of snow right on time. 20cm of fresh powder has fallen across the resort, 15cm up top. Why less at the top? Windblown is the word. Look for characteristic wind lips and spines up in the Yamabiko for hurling a few freestyle spins. If your a fair weather skier then stick to the lower slopes that will be more sheltered from adverse conditions. Quite a contrast to yesterday, which saw nice scattered bluebird conditions corresponding with ample fresh powder snow. North facing slopes […]
35cm Overnight
Base up top: 260 cm Temp Top; -8 Degrees Base at bottom; 155 cm New Snow since close: 35 cm Weather; Light snow Deep snow has once again buried Nozawa Onsen last night. A shift of the wind to the north west has resulted in a dramatically increase snowfall rate and we have accumulated around 35cm across the mountain. There will been excellent riding today especially in the Yamabiko tree area. Yesterday saw less snowfall than expected and as a result in was a good day for the groomers. Up top saw some nice powder amongst the trees. Off piste on the lower slopes were affected by a crust layer, which should be sufficiently buried by today. In […]
Monday Funday!
Base up top: 240 cm Temp Top; -8 Degrees Base at bottom; 150 cm New Snow since close: 10 cm Weather; Light snow This morning we have isolated light snow showers falling across the resort. Totals have not substantiated to forecast amounts; we have had 10cm on the upper slopes and just a dusting in the village. This system is moving in from the west, not an ideal direction for Nozawa Onsen due to blocking mountain ranges. Again, the best riding will be had today on the well groomed runs, which will be fast and smooth. Yesterday was quite nice, better than expected. Wind and visibility was mostly fine, and the snow was running fast on the groomers. […]