Hokkaido Japan Help..

[jorion]

I was on 109s in niseko and felt a little undergunned. 120+ is fine. The snow is light enough it was ok though. Sure would have enjoyed the lotuses American Airlines lost.

[jorion]

Powtron, you’re in japan with BG Tours right? You want to sell them to me before you go home? Joking/not joking

[Boof Head]

As mentioned, 120+ for daily use in Hokkaido, inbounds and out.
I’ve been using Élan Boomerangs at 121 underfoot for last 5 trips.

[jorion]

One thing I’d add is that skinnier skis could be useful near Tokachi-dake given the big mountains and wind exposure.

[Jack Burton]

Thanks for the replies, sweet & deep! READY for snow!!

[PowTron]

Powtron, you’re in japan with BG Tours right? You want to sell them to me before you go home? Joking/not joking

I wish. Watching from afar still and thinking of hopping a last minute flight in a couple of weeks.

At that time I will have BG tours and CD with me

[pano-dude]

At Niseko now, conditions are variable. Deep in the am and chopped up in the pm. I'm snowboarding this trip but would be fine on a 100 under foot ski right now which is my usual touring sky in BC.

Japow is awesome!

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[Fish Rider]

Headed to tenjin bc and hakuba in Feb. Where of the 9 in hakuba is best? 2 days there.

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[nortonwhis]

Cortina was the only resort there that allowed full access tree skiing. Gets mobbed on a pow day.
Goryu has a fun slackcountry zone. the tree zone at 47 is a bit of a joke. Really the best stuff in Hakuba is out of bounds above the resorts. There are a lifetime worth of objectives there, even more so as its very difficult to get conditions to line up, especially mid winter...
Edit. Hakuba is on Honshu, this is a Hokkaido thread...

[pow_pow~]

Edit. Hakuba is on Honshu, this is a Hokkaido thread...

got a link to the hakuba thread? can't find it

[TarTar]

Hey Guys, the wife and I are landing in Sapporo Feb 5th for the month and are wondering where/how is the best way to stay in the area? Have been looking at a few AirBnB's, considering the Camper Van (more myself than her haha) and then I guess there's hotels? We both have lots of experience in the interior of BC's BC, and are fully kitted out for touring so want to be able to get the full experience (resort and slackcountry). From what I have read on here that's pretty easy to do stationed out of the Sapporo area? Obviously correct me if wrong and any input is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!!

[BFD]

the best way to stay is in a ryokan where you tour right out the door. A month will be expensive but Hokkaido is fairly cheap compared to Honshu. Do not know your budget. The best part of skiing japan is the food and lodging. Any place that has been mentioned in any thread on this web site will be crowded and over run with westerners. My kids said they left places because they could not even find a parking place for their camper van.

[Mike Pow]

the best way to stay is in a ryokan where you tour right out the door. A month will be expensive but Hokkaido is fairly cheap compared to Honshu. Do not know your budget. The best part of skiing japan is the food and lodging. Any place that has been mentioned in any thread on this web site will be crowded and over run with westerners. My kids said they left places because they could not even find a parking place for their camper van.

I've mentioned plenty of places where there have been less than 10 Westerners skiing there all day.

[BFD]

I've mentioned plenty of places where there have been less than 10 Westerners skiing there all day.

I generalized a bit. I endorsed your advice earlier in a thread. If someone wanted to spend some time planning a trip it would be beneficial to go through all your posts. so in the nature of sharing I will offer up
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re..._Hokkaido.html
head there right from the airport spend a couple of nights. Ski Eniwa-dake out the door. Not the best aspect but will be ok if snowing.

[TarTar]

Thanks Guys. Yes I have been reading through all the posts, tons of useful information out there. That place does sound very nice for couple of nights. I have reached out to Rising Sun Guides for info on their multi day guiding package as well....any suggestions for that type of service? Also looked into their Cat Ski operation. Both seem reasonably priced.

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[SUPERIOR]

I would definitely recommend Rising Sun Guides for touring, as they are one of the most experienced outfits in Hokkaido.

I believe Chuck at Hokkaido Powder guides is another good resource for central Hokkaido.

The best cat skiing is Shimamaki Cats, run by HBC in Niseko. They also have a day trip called House of Powder.

Black Diamond has some great multi day trips and are very experienced as well. They provide ACMG/AMGA guides or Japanese locals, which is a plus.

Another good option is researching and staying up at Kurodake Ropeway in the town of Sounkyou. Good times there in mid to late February, as they are closed in Jan.

[BFD]

I have skied Kurodake a few times. No need to take the ropeway. Trail starts about couple hundred yards to your left past the shrine. best skiing is actually the trees under the ropeway. The lodging kind of sucks. large concrete structures. Not many choices in winter. Stayed at a pension in the mall cannot remember the name. Also here
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re..._Hokkaido.html large corporate style hotel which you will share with many Chinese tourists. Food is buffet style but quality was ok. They switch the onsen every other day which is nice as the rooms are different. i think we were there 4 nights. The brought us items for dinner that were not on the buffet. I think as appreciation or recognition of us staying there so long. So I will recommend. The ice festival I thought was going to be pretty lame actually is worth checking out. dress warm
best line is the spine behind the 7-11 across from the Cho.

[SUPERIOR]

I have skied Kurodake a few times. No need to take the ropeway. Trail starts about couple hundred yards to your left past the shrine...best skiing is actually the trees under the ropeway...

I’d say a $35 ticket on the ropeway is more than worth it. Those trees are so tight and steep that I think BFD is trying to punk you.

Also, the restaurant on top of Kurodake has amazing food.



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[Mike Pow]

I generalized a bit. I endorsed your advice earlier in a thread. If someone wanted to spend some time planning a trip it would be beneficial to go through all your posts. so in the nature of sharing I will offer up
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re..._Hokkaido.html
head there right from the airport spend a couple of nights. Ski Eniwa-dake out the door. Not the best aspect but will be ok if snowing.

Yes you did. Cheers.

Great touring in this area.

Eniwa-dake, Tarumae, Fuppushi.

And short drive to Jozankei and Sapporo Kokusai.

An idea of the views and terrain on Eniwa-dake

[TarTar]

Awesome! Thanks Again guys....so much to take in here and get sorted out for the trip. Wife and I are getting super stoked, we have some Skevik Antons (https://skevikskis.com/products/anto...nt=42234703756) being made up especially for Japan with a little Japanese flair in the graphic. Have some new Kingpins ready to mount up as well. Obviously we can't travel with our Airbags, is that something that can be rented locally? If so we should probably just rent the whole kit over there instead of packing beacon/shovel/probe?

[ianpnw]

You can rent full BCA (but not Mammut) canisters in Niseko for about $5/day. And hit up Mitch Potter from RSG - American, speaks fluent Japanese, has spent several seasons in Hokkaido and is awesome at finding the goods.

[North]

Haven't seen it mentioned in the various Japan threads I've been reading, so I'll ask here:

What are people using for topo maps digital or otherwise on Hokkaido (or Honsho for that matter)?

[SUPERIOR]

You can buy Japanese topos, but they lack some standardized features... and are in Japanese obviously.

People were using Gaia there last time I checked.


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[TahoeBC]

I used AllTrails, just zoomed in around the area that interested me while I had WiFi that way it would be cached on the phone and did not need cell coverage to use it. I use the free version and it has worked around the world for me. Practice before going in your local hills, but you can look at topo’s all over the globe with it.

[Any]

for a basic start, you can turn the terrain feature on in google maps and get topo maps.

ive also been using the backcountry navigator android app for a while because i bought it ages ago and it can download and save the jp maps for offline use.
there are many that can do that now tho i think.

you might also like to use http://maps.gsi.go.jp/#15/42.827156/...l0u0t0z0r0s0f0