It's here: the last day for the season at most of the resorts. The snowpack has really come down, too, so I doubt there's going to be a whole lot more season even at the three that are soldiering on. Kind of a fitting end for a strange season, with rain in January, but enough snow on a regular schedule to make it pretty fun in the backcountry. Oh, yeah, and basically no snow at all in the whole month of March...

The one big development was the opening (well, re-opening in a sense) of Lotte Arai Resort. Sounds like the facilities were pretty quiet (like not lots of people wandering the halls), and lots of space on the slopes as well. It sounds like the resort is thinking long-term, though, and it's probably smarter to build a clientele than get bombed from the first year. It's quite a different resort form all the others in the Myoko area, and choice is good, right?

It's a nice day out there, though, and a good way to end the season, and it was a good season if not our best ever for snow. We'll just have to see how long Akakan, Seki Onsen and Lotte Arai can keep running, and Akakura Onsen until next week.

I'll report again once we hear from the remaining resorts about any changes.

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Akakura Kanko:
220 cm, 8°; closing May 6

Akakura Onsen:
170cm, 3°; closing April 8

Ikenotaira Onsen:
150cm, 5°

Myoko Suginohara:
110cm, 1°; Gondola only; closing today

Seki Onsen:
290 cm, 4°; closing May 6

Myoko Ski Park:
110 cm, 9°; closing today

Kyukamura RunRun:
170 cm, 9°; closing today

Lotte Arai Resort:
370cm, 10.1°; Mamushigaeshi, Exciter and Discovery closed (weren't some of these permanently closed?); Myoko Long Run Upper partially open; Okenashi Bowl, North Bowl, Funaishi-zawa, Happy Place and Benzaku-zawa open (FK maybe?)in the avalanche-controlled areas; closing May 6

Tangram Ski Circus:
91 cm, 4°; closing today

Madarao Kogen:
120 cm, 6°; closing today

Kurohime Kogen Snow Park:
15cm (really?), 2°; closing today