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Kiana (4) getting deep - Kiana has only been skiing for a week but so far looks to have the goods. I would not be at all surprised to see her dropping in off the back by the end of the season.

New Snow (Resort): 50cm
New Snow (Village): 50cm
Weather: Heavy snow
Snow Depth: 135cm (Yamabiko)
Outlook: Heavy snow expected over the next few days
Open Areas: Almost the whole mountain is open. Some steeps that run off Skyline need more snow.

When I woke up to only a thin layer of wet dust this morning I was a little bit disappointed, however it only took until mid morning for the heavy dumpage to commence. light and dry powder has been coming down thick and fast ever since and it is still going strong at the moment. The forecast is for continued heavy snow overnight and for the next few days. There are a lot of people on the mountain at the moment and visibility is not the best, however there will be some great lines to be had first thing tomorrow morning.

Happy new year and best wishes for a wonderful 2010!!!

New Years information for visitors to Nozawa

The resort puts on a variety of activities to ring in the new year. On the night of the 31st they extend nighter hours until 1130 at the Nagasaka slopes, provide free sake and hot wine, and hold a countdown to the new year and fireworks display. The Shrine area up above Ogama is a popular place to go after midnight, where you can make wishes for the new year in a Japanese tradition known as Hatsumoude (and drink free sake…) If you feel like having a quiet night, new years is the biggest night on TV in Japan. There is K1 (mixed martial arts), M1 (stand up comedy competition) and ‘Kohaku Uta Gassen’ – singing competition starring many famous Japanese artists. Whatever you have planned, keep your fingers crossed for plenty of snow to bring in the new year.

Rob Green is a qualified massage therapist with 20 years experience, performing sports massage on the Gold Coast. A massage is the perfect way to loosen up your body when even Nozawas famous hot springs can’t do it for you. Rob can take his table to your lodge or arrange a place in town.

Qualifications:
Diploma in remedial and therapeutic massage.

- Lymphatic drainage, great for breaking down lactic acid after some heavy skiing.
- Deep tissue massage
- Shiatsu style massage (fully clothed massage possible)
- Sports and relaxation massage

6000 yen per hour

Mountain Guide

Make the most of your time on the mountain by arranging for a mountain tour with Rob. Rob will plan your attack taking the ability of your group into account and show you the best that Nozawa Onsen has to offer. Mountain tour is available for all level of skiers and boarders.

Mountain tour cost: 8000 yen for a two hour tour

To arrange a mountain tour or massage, email Rob at greenyrob@hotmail.com

New Snow (Resort): 0cm
New Snow (Village): 0cm
Weather: Fine
Snow Depth: 90cm (Yamabiko)
Outlook: Heavy snow expected overnight
Open Areas: Almost the whole mountain is open. Some steeps that run off Skyline need more snow.

Today was a fine day in Nozawa with firm conditions earlier on softening throughout the day. Winds were strong on the hill and the village got quite warm. Overall not a bad day to take three onsens. It is predicted to snow heavily overnight and over the next few days. The JMA forecast is for the carnage to start later on this evening.

So far we have seen only a few days of winter this season, with uncharacteristically warm temperatures and blue skies for most of December. The base has been laid down, we are now patiently waiting for the snow to start falling again to get things properly underway.

Ren - beautiful dog and namesake of rental shop Ren

This animal is also quite popular with the ladies – Sanohiro

Ren is a new rental shop located right in front of the Karasawa lifts named after Ren, the dog pictured above. It is run by Sano san, a local pro snowboarder. Last year we featured several of Sano san’s photos on our site throughout the season and hopefully will be doing the same this year. Ren stocks top brand snowboards, all fitted with the Shimano step in binding system and Shimano boots. Getting good quality rental equipment can make or break your day on the snow – if you rent from Ren you definitely will not be disappointed. Rental Shop Ren also has Afdice gear clothing available for rent – Afdice  gear is fully breathable extremely high quality goretex wear.

Full set wear – 3000 yen
Boots, bindings, board – 3000 yen

New Snow (Resort): 10cm
New Snow (Village): 5cm
Weather: Low cloud
Snow Depth: 100cm (Yamabiko)
Outlook: Heavy snow expected from tomorrow evening.
Open Areas: Almost the whole mountain is open. Some steeps that run off Skyline need more snow.

Yesterday we had some decent heavy snow for a few hours after the lifts closed, followed by light snow on and off throughout the night. Just enough to freshen things up a little bit. Tomorrow evening we are expecting a good front to come through for a few days of heavy snow. With the resort recording only 2cm of snow on the Karasawa slopes, it can’t come a moment too soon. The 2 cm recording is right down the bottom of the slope – both lifts are running and there is enough to ski on for the time being.

The talk in town is that the bad economy is causing pain for Nozawa. Many lodges are reporting vacancies over new years, this will apparently be the quietest New Years in anyone’s memory.

New Years information for visitors to Nozawa

The resort puts on a variety of activities to ring in the new year. On the night of the 31st they extend nighter hours until 1130 at the Nagasaka slopes, provide free sake and hot wine, and hold a countdown to the new year and fireworks display. The Shrine area up above Ogama is a popular place to go after midnight, where you can make wishes for the new year in a Japanese tradition known as Hatsumoude (and drink free sake…) If you feel like having a quiet night, new years is the biggest night on TV in Japan. There is K1 (mixed martial arts), M1 (stand up comedy competition) and ‘Kohaku Uta Gassen’ – singing competition starring many famous Japanese artists. Whatever you have planned, keep your fingers crossed for plenty of snow to bring in the new year.

Message to Rowan: We are trying to respond to your enquiry but your email provider keeps bouncing back our emails. Please send a message to nozawa@naganogo.com

New Snow (Resort): 0cm
New Snow (Village): 0cm
Weather: Low cloud, light snow/sleet/rain showers
Snow Depth: 90cm (Yamabiko)
Outlook: A decent fall of snow overnight, Heavy snow over the new year period.
Open Areas: Almost the whole mountain is open. Some steeps that run off Skyline need more snow.

Today has been a warm day with temperatures hovering around zero, and a mixture of light rain, sleet and snow falling this morning into the early afternoon. It is now sunny with blue skies.

We are expecting some reasonable snow fall later this evening. A low front is expected to come through from the thirtieth which should bring some more powder. As much as I like snowboarding and skiing in all conditions, I’m craving a hit of the good stuff…

The resort puts on a variety of activities to ring in the new year. On the night of the 31st they extend nighter hours until 1130 at the Nagasaka slopes, provide free sake and hot wine, and hold a countdown to the new year and fireworks display. The Shrine area up above Ogama is a popular place to go after midnight, where you can make wishes for the new year in a Japanese tradition known as Hatsumoude (and drink free sake…) If you feel like having a quiet night, new years is the biggest night on TV in Japan. There is K1 (mixed martial arts), M1 (stand up comedy competition) and ‘Kohaku Uta Gassen’ – singing competition starring many famous Japanese artists. Whatever you have planned, keep your fingers crossed for plenty of snow to bring in the new year.

New Snow (Resort): dusting on Yamabiko
New Snow (Village): 0cm
Weather: Low cloud, light snow/sleet
Snow Depth: 90cm (Yamabiko)
Outlook: Light snow throughout the day, a decent fall expected over new years.
Open Areas: Almost the whole mountain is open. Some steeps that run off Skyline need more snow.

It is a cold and grey day on the mountain, low cloud, light snow and poor visibility are making conditions difficult. During peak times at Nozawa the most congested places are Yamabiko and Uenotaira whereas the Yunomine and Mizunashi slopes have similar terrain to these areas, but tend not to get nearly as crowded. The Yunomine and Mizunashi lifts are both running over the New Years holidays.

Yesterday saw some light snow fall up the mountain in the afternoon. Conditions were firm in the morning but quite sloppy in the afternoon.

The snow has well and truly settled up on Yamabiko, with the depth measuring only 90cm at the moment. Karasawa is started to get a bit patchy, with dirt showing through in high traffic areas down the bottom. There is nothing too much to worry about, heavy snow is expected from the 30th of December. The chances are good for a powdery start to 2010, with tree skiing on Yamabiko not too long into the new year.

New Snow (Resort): 0cm
New Snow (Village): 0cm
Weather: Fine
Snow Depth: 100cm (Yamabiko)
Outlook: Some light snow on the 28/29, a good fall expected over New Years.
Open Areas: Almost the whole mountain is open. Some steeps that run off Skyline need more snow.
Happy festive season to everyone. Today is the start of the busy New Years season and the Nagasaka Gondola area was bustling at first lifts this morning. The resort is claiming ‘powder’ in their snow report. They are either being very optimistic or forgot to update it as firm groomers are definitely the order of the day.

The forecast is looking decent at this stage. A ‘toshi koshi kampa’ (storm to bring in the new year) is expected from the 30th which will hopefully kick off 2010 the right way.

New Snow (Resort): 5cm (Yamabiko)
New Snow (Village): 0cm
Weather: Rain and snow with low cloud and poor visibility on the upper slopes.
Snow Depth: 120cm (Yamabiko)
Outlook: Mostly fine for the next few days, possibility of some snow on Monday evening.
Open Areas: Everything is open except Skyline, runs off skyline, Karasawa and Kandahar.

It rained steadily throughout the night in the village, and winter wonderland got a bit slushy. The good news is that on the mountain it was snow – around 5-10cm. The weather does not look that great up on the mountain, with poor visibility up top. In the forecast we have some snow expected on Monday night.

Tomorrow is the last day for discount lift tickets – 3000 yen for an adults one day pass. With most of the mountain open that is a pretty great deal.