If you haven’t already heard it is dumping here in Hirafu, and apparently it’s not stopping anytime soon. I just checked the snow forecast for the next couple of days and we are looking at almost 50cms between today and Wednesday. Bring it on winter!
With all this powder on the ground but no way to ride it, things are getting a little stir crazy, so this Sunday some of us locals visited Sapporo to check out the Banff Mountain Film Festival. This is a selection of award-winning short films that tours the world every year after their initial showing in Banff, Canada.
If we were hoping to get our minds off the snow we were severely disappointed. The world-renowned festival opened with the intriguingly titled Unicorn Sashimi, which was filmed in our very own Niseko. Slow motion shots of skiers shredding through chest high powder did nothing to dampen our excitement for the upcoming season.
It wasn’t all greedy powder shots though, there was a film about kayaking in New Zealand that had us on the edge of our seats, and one about freakishly talented rock climber Alex Honnold, which had me wanting to race home and tackle the indoor rock climbing wall at Niseko Adventure Centre.
It was an incredible experience, which made us all itch to get on the slopes that little bit more. The drive home in the snowstorm seemed to cap off a day that seemed a prelude to the most awesome season yet. When I woke this morning to walk to work through calf high powder (please note, I have short legs), this suspicion seemed confirmed.
So if the Banff Mountain Film Festival happens to grace your town, make sure you check it out and be sure pay special attention to the very first film to get a glimpse of what we’ll be doing in Niseko this winter!
Unicorn Sashimi is my favourite Niseko clip, check it out: http://www.vimeo.com/38121690