Snowy field near Nozawa summit.
Base up top: 270cm Temp Top; -11 Degrees
Base at bottom: 140cm
New Snow since close: 2cm
It’s absolutely dumping in Nozawa Onsen this morning! The heavy flakes started at about 7am and since then about 5-10cm has gathered on the lodge railing. Its looks like this weather has really set in and snowfalls are forecast to continue for the rest of the day, along with extremely cold temperatures. A couple of strong wind gusts even down in the village means that some lifts may go on wind hold, especially higher up.
Yesterday was another nice day on the mountain. There were many powder stashes on offer around Yamabiko thanks to windblown snow being deposited on the leeward side of the summit ridge. Quality was very nice, light and dry on a crusty base. Death cookies which have been a problem off piste recently are gradually becoming buried.
It is a long weekend this weekend for the Chinese New Year so crowd levels will be higher than usual about the slopes. Get up for first lifts to avoid the usual gondola lines that occur on public holidays.
This weekend we should see some significant snowfalls. Snow should continue for the rest of the day, grading to snow showers overnight and tomorrow. Sunday looks to be a big day of snowfalls, especially overnight. During Sunday night 30cm or more is looking likely at this stage.
A skier comes unstuck in challenging conditions.
