One last blast of winter

Niseko had its biggest one-day snowfall in six years last month. On February 24 a massive storm blew across the Sea of Japan and hammered the entire country and dumped 58cm on Niseko according to Kutchan’s official statistics. The storm caused massive disruptions to Chitose Airport and wreaked havoc on local roads. Most of the deluge came between midday and about 6pm, when more than a foot of snow rapidly accumulated off thoroughfares. Locals and holidaymakers alike were salivating at the prospect of the deep powder that would be awaiting them when the storm passed. The next day only Hirafu’s family lift was open and it wasn’t until three days later that things had died down enough to allow the upper lifts to start working. That morning everybody’s fattest, powder-specific skis and boards were out in anticipation. But rather than being the day of the season, it turned out to be the dissapointment of the season – the wind had blown it all away. According to local avalanche guru Akio Shinya the surface was what is called ‘skavl’. “The storm blew the soft surface away and formed a crusted rippled surface – skavl. The crust layer that was at 40-50cm under the surface a couple of days before became the surface layer.” You can’t have your cake and eat it too.