Hokkaido Japan; Central Hokkaido or Niseko

[SkiLyft]

Post the google doc after you're done!

Roger that


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[thebear]

Cross-posting WDG’s recap from the TR forum, to hopefully provide more intel... and stoke:
https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/...d.php?t=325292


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[El Chupacabra]

Some more beta for anyone interested:

We had reserved a stay at the Hotel Tiffany in Asahikawa, which is a "love hotel." Photos online made it look OK anyway. It got vetoed by my travel companions upon arrival. (Cum stains and vibrator on their bed were not a feature they were looking for.)

We left and found, last minute, the Furano Hops hotel in Kamifurano (a little north of the Furano ski area). Older place, kind of worn, but clean and very friendly staff. We selected the breakfast included rate - breakfast is traditional Japanese, but also has coffee, juice, rolls.

Half of our group is sick right now, to the point of not skiing today, so the rest of us are googling for what to do/ where to ski. Considering checking out some small ski hill.

[TahoeJ]

^^ lol. We avoided any cheap spots for that reason but my group still had the same. All three of my friends out for the count while I’m skiing powder solo and sending them pics. I’m rarely the one who gets lucky.

[jtran10]

Check out kamui el chup

[El Chupacabra]

Still sitting at hotel. Going to Furano for 3 hr ticket today while others recover.

We will go to Kamui tomorrow.

I think the sickness on this trip started with one who caught it just as we left the US. Symptoms are similar to the 3-week crap I got around Christmas - I usually get whatever bug is going around (being in same hotel room and car with 3 coughing people should have infected me), but I dodged it somehow, so maybe I already got this bug back home. Had an upset stomach for a day, but seems to have passed.

[Wiilbert]

We skied Sapporo Kokusai today and it delivered. How the fuck do I embed a pic on mobile?

https://www.dropbox.com/s/6s85evl6ji...03240.JPG?dl=0

The wife and I will be in Furano tomorrow evening. Probably tour furano dake on Tuesday, no further plans. Anybody make it to Tomamu recently? Worth a visit?

[beer30]

I too was sick as hell most of last week. Flu running around, took out 15 workers in my hotel too.

[Adrgha]

Any recommendations as to which 4G pocket WiFi provider is best suited for Hokkaido? I understand there are some differences in coverage between the different providers.

[jtran10]

Tomamu needs a refresh but is worth it once that happens

Global advanced communications worked well everywhere in central hokkaido

[dangerdad]

Just got back from 2 weeks.
In Otaru for 5 nights and furano/haksuginso for 4 nights.
Kiroro is fun, but touring either from the parking lot or from the top of the gondola makes terrain MUCH better.
Furano was the best resort by far. Great side country. Felt like a mini jackson to me (Japan style).
Haksiginso was so awesome, but skiing below tree line is pretty mellow - cool alpine terrain, but stormy or super windy the whole time we were there.

We did not enjoy being in Sapporo at all. City felt just a lot less awesome than everywhere else. Traffic kind of sucks and snow slows everything down. Anti-westerner sentiment at bars and restaurants (fair - we suck). Sapporo resorts also closed for wind both days. Would skip entirely if returning.

Over all awesome trip all around. Loved time in Tokyo too.

[TahoeJ]

If you’re talking about all of the bars / places that are Japanese only, there are plenty of those in Tokyo as well as Sapporo.

[WaistDeepGroomers]

Just got back from 2 weeks.
In Otaru for 5 nights and furano/haksuginso for 4 nights.
Kiroro is fun, but touring either from the parking lot or from the top of the gondola makes terrain MUCH better.
Furano was the best resort by far. Great side country. Felt like a mini jackson to me (Japan style).

Over all awesome trip all around. Loved time in Tokyo too.

I would echo these comments. 10 days seems like enough time to cover both areas, and Furano is the shit. If only doing lift-accessed, a few days at Furano & Asahidake are definitely well worth it... Furano had the best continuous fall line skiing of any of the resorts I skied (did not ski any Niseko United stuff).

Otaru is a really cool town and my favorite of all the ones we were in in Hokkaido & Tokyo.

IMO I was not that into Kiroro... the touring is really good but it's not a place I'd be excited to go back to and buy a lift ticket at.

Not sure how open to touring you are but I would def do Shiribetsu right next to Rusutsu... that place was amazing! And way more continuous, steep, fall-line skiing than the rest of the area.

[phatty]

IMO I was not that into Kiroro... the touring is really good but it's not a place I'd be excited to go back to and buy a lift ticket at.

I've been to Kiroro a couple times and it's good for about a day if you are staying inbounds. Their rules on the ropes can be kind of annoying. Rusutsu was a much better resort IMO. Need to check out Furano next time I'm out there.

[El Chupacabra]

Any recommendations as to which 4G pocket WiFi provider is best suited for Hokkaido? I understand there are some differences in coverage between the different providers.

Not really a direct answer, but FWIW, Google Fi has worked well all over Hokkaido, Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka. Free wifi is widely available - hotels, restaurants, bars (even hole in the wall places).

[TarTar]

Not really a direct answer, but FWIW, Google Fi has worked well all over Hokkaido, Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka. Free wifi is widely available - hotels, restaurants, bars (even hole in the wall places).

I read earlier on about just getting a local SIM card as it was cheaper...?


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[jtran10]

My phone isn't unlocked which is why I went the wifi route. Has works as well as advertised.

[Mike Pow]

Yeah inbounds at Kiroro sucks

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtDFxtflT4O/

[ripvanwinter]

Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day so we took advantage of the weather and did a mellow skin around the fumaroles at Asahidake.

Arrived at hakuginsu lodge this evening and the snow is really coming down right now. Can’t wait for tomorrow. Definitely come to hakuginsu lodge. It is truly a gem of a place.

[Evil E]

FYI. Im headed out to Hokkaido tomorrow with 1 more longtime tahoe local. If anyone has room in any sort of guided tour for 2 more people shoot me an email at ebbfilm@gmail.com we will be based out of niseko for 4 days starting Jan 31st and then furano for 4 more days until Feb 9. We will have a rental car. see ya there!

[jtran10]

Probably some helpful planning info here, and if not of interest anyway:

A look back at the season so far: January 2019

The months just fly by don’t they. OK, enough of the clichés... it’s time to look back on the month of January and the 18/19 season so far.

All the numbers that I am discussing here (apart from the JMA numbers at the end) can be found within these Niseko Now reports. See below and the ‘Snowfall Analysis’ page via that big blue tab link thingy up top. And, of course, please always keep in mind that I take my measurements from close to the base of Niseko Grand Hirafu. My numbers can all be compared like-for-like, because they are coming from the same places each season and I try my best to always be consistent.

This is how much snowfall I have measured myself during the month of January over the last seven years:

January 2019: 285cm
January 2017: 305cm
January 2016: 152cm
January 2015: 303cm
January 2014: 257cm
January 2013: 461cm
January 2012: 443cm

In the end we didn’t quite manage to hit 3m snowfall at base, and about 20cm less than I observed in January last season. Still, 285cm is nearly double the now famously rubbish (calm down... I mean relatively!!) 16/17 season, but also not reaching the lofty numbers in 2012 and 2013. Monthly numbers don’t say anything about consistency and quality of course...

One great thing has been that I was able to measure fresh cm of snowfall on all but 6 days through the month of January 2019. Adding that on to the 5 days without any new cm of snow measured in December 2018, it means there have only been 11 reports during the whole of December 2018 and January 2019 without any new cm of snow at base.

Fresh snowfall recorded in 51 out of 62 reports. Impressive.

So, Niseko is continuing to deliver some excellent consistency which is a good job because we need it (see comments last season about the real need for regular refreshes in such a popular destination).

On to my ‘season to date’ numbers. These are from the beginning of the season to the end of January:

2018/2019 season up to end of January 2019: 702cm
2017/2018 season up to end of January 2018: 899cm
2016/2017 season up to end of January 2017: 445cm
2015/2016 season up to end of January 2016: 611cm
2014/2015 season up to end of January 2015: 806cm
2013/2014 season up to end of January 2014: 859cm
2012/2013 season up to end of January 2013: 979cm

And here’s how much of the total snowfall for a season we have already had fall on us by the end of January in those recent seasons:

By the end of January 2019, as a % of the season total: ???
By the end of January 2018, as a % of the season total: about 71%
By the end of January 2017, as a % of the season total: about 65%
By the end of January 2016, as a % of the season total: about 62%
By the end of January 2015, as a % of the season total: about 70%
By the end of January 2014, as a % of the season total: about 74%
By the end of January 2012, as a % of the season total: about 66%

By the end of the month of January, we have usually had between 62-74% of the total snowfall that we can expect over the entire season. (The average being 68%). Hopefully we’ll get at least 3m more snowfall this season, and obviously the more the better.

Always want more snow.

Looking ahead to February, here’s how much snowfall I have recorded during the month of in the last six winter seasons. The numbers in brackets show the total observed snowfall up until the end of February in each of the respective seasons.

February 2018: 299cm (1198cm)
February 2017: 160cm (605cm)
February 2016: 266cm (877cm)
February 2015: 196cm (1002cm)
February 2014: 178cm (1037cm)
February 2013: 316cm (1295cm)

The last piece of data that I always look at is the snowfall numbers that the Japan Meteorological Agency report from their observation station in Kutchan town. Here is what they have reported for the month of January in recent years:

January 2019: 253cm
January 2018: 259cm
January 2017: 160cm
January 2016: 258cm
January 2015: 230cm
January 2014: 317cm
January 2013: 268cm

And the JMA numbers for the ‘season so far’:

2018/2019 season up to end of January 2019: 667cm
2017/2018 season up to end of January 2018: 752cm
2016/2017 season up to end of January 2017: 568cm
2015/2016 season up to end of January 2016: 488cm
2014/2015 season up to end of January 2015: 658cm
2013/2014 season up to end of January 2014: 674cm
2012/2013 season up to end of January 2013: 672cm

[ropeducker]

2 cents worth and my vote for Furano (inbounds). A couple of days after some snow...

[SLCMunchie]

Random question for the collective on pot and Japan. After some research, i'm not going to even try and bring a pen with me. usually travel with a pen no problem in the states, however international got me thinking a bit more. So- leaving that at home.

However, i use a few different CBD balms for muscle recovery and the like. Is it worth leaving these at home? i have one with CBD and THC although no mental affects- -leave at home? Has anyone had any experience with this?

[simple]

It is highly illegal in Japan.

That being said, I liked having brownies with me.

[kungpow]

Random question for the collective on pot and Japan. After some research, i'm not going to even try and bring a pen with me. usually travel with a pen no problem in the states, however international got me thinking a bit more. So- leaving that at home.

However, i use a few different CBD balms for muscle recovery and the like. Is it worth leaving these at home? i have one with CBD and THC although no mental affects- -leave at home? Has anyone had any experience with this?

Just ask the Aussie bro's at the bar mate!