Graduation is this weekend so Friday was a free day at the college. My colleague/ski buddy/friend from the Miyagi Zao trip suggested we head up to Urabandai Nekoma (裏磐梯猫魔). We both are huge fans of Nekoma and were excited to ski its beech (椈, ぶな) forest with 280cm of snow underneath. Rain early in the [...]
Archive for February, 2009
Nekoma (猫魔) Revisited
Posted in Japan, Ski, tagged Backcountry, Bandai, Beech, Fukushima, Japan, Neko Bus, Nekoma, Powder, Ski, Tohoku, Totoro, Tree, Urabandai on February 28, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Kawaba (川場)
Posted in Japan, Ski, tagged Backcountry, 百名山, Gunma, Hotaka, Hyakumeizan, Japan, Kagura, Kawaba, Minakami, Niigata, Numata, Powder, Ski, Tree on February 15, 2009 | 1 Comment »
Anyone interested in skiing the Kan-Etsu corridor (関越自動車道) of Gumna/Niigata should check out Kawaba (川場スキー場). This small resort northeast of Numata (沼田町) offers solid skiing and quality dirt bag amenities. Apologies for the oxymoron, but I’m not a good enough writer to ferret out something better. Feel free to read up on “Dirtbaggin’ Like Kings: [...]
Dirtbaggin’ Like Kings: A Night at Kawaba
Posted in Dirtbaggin', Japan, Ski, tagged car, Dirtbaggin', Japan, Kagura, Kawaba, Naeba, Onsen, Powder, Ski, sleep on February 15, 2009 | 1 Comment »
On most Japan ski trips I manage to scrounge up some place functional to sleep. Functional in terms of dirtbagging pretty much means an empty parking space. Close proximity to a public restroom, while not a necessity, is definitely a bonus. Expressway SA (service area) and PA (parking area) usually are good choices because they [...]
Kagura (かぐらスキー場)
Posted in Japan, Ski, tagged Japan, Kagura, Mitsumata, Naeba, Niigata, Ski, Tashiro, Tree, Yuzawa on February 7, 2009 | 1 Comment »
Late december was not the best time in terms of snow quality to ski Yuzawa (湯沢町). A partnership between two resorts, Kagura and Naeba (苗場), provides the largest and tallest ski area in the region. Quickly glancing at the course maps, I identified Kagura as having the higher lift serviced elevation. This in conjunction with [...]
Gran Deco (グランデコ）
Posted in Japan, Ski, tagged Backcountry, Bandai, Fukushima, Gondola, Gran Deco, Japan, Larch, Ski, Tree, Urabandai on February 4, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Gran Deco is a close second behind Urabandai Nekoma for top resort in the Bandai Region of Fukushima. It might be premature to make this statement without first visting Tengendai Kogen, but I’m probably in the clear as it is located in Yamagata Prefecture. The resort has great views of Mt. Bandai (磐梯山) and Lake [...]
