It's the last morning of the month and I am very pleased to be able to report 14cm of fresh snowfall on the ground here at base. And it's good quality stuff too by the looks. Nice.

It is still snowing now, though expected to ease off this morning... before coming back later tomorrow.

Wind doesn't look like it is going to be an issue today so I expect the lifts to be open as planned.

In my report tomorrow I'll be looking back on January and the season so far. In the meantime... I'm off to Otaru for the day!

---

A message from SnowJapan

Firstly, we would again like to thank everyone who has sent in messages this season regarding our daily reports and website in general. We read them all and appreciate the feedback. And we hope that if you have already visited Japan this season, you timed it well with conditions at your chosen destination.

It is perhaps inevitable that some people will compare the daily Now reports from different regions of Japan, and in particularly the observed new snowfall data that is posted on the reports. But if you do that please keep in mind that doing so is not really comparing like-for-like… and it’s certainly not ‘the whole picture’.

By comparing the observed snowfall data, essentially you are comparing how much snow is falling at base areas. While we believe that is a very interesting and useful piece of data - and is in fact the only practical first-hand data that could possibly be consistently recorded once a day – it is only one part of the situation.

Other important information, including the snowfall that ski resorts themselves might be reporting at higher elevations, can be found within the text of the report when available.

That is why we highly recommend that if you really want to get a more complete picture of what is going on in each of the areas covered in our reports, you should go through the individual reports including all the archives.

A few other quick points:

Each report is written independently from the other reports, by different people.

The reports are not ‘connected’ in any way.

For one reporter, a temperature of -2C might be described as ‘cold’. For another reporter, on the same day, a temperature of -2C might be described as ‘relatively warm’.

For one reporter, 15cm of snowfall overnight might be described as ‘a lot’. For another reporter, on the same day, 15cm of snowfall might be described as less exciting.

The person posting Niseko Now is reporting from Niseko, and is not making comparisons with any of the other reports, or considering what is happening elsewhere. (Unless clearly stated of course).

The person posting Hakuba Now is reporting from Hakuba, and the same applies.

While each report is coming to you from the respective resort base areas, some ski resorts have much more ‘vertical’ than others. Some will experience much more of a difference in the amount of snow that falls at base/village level than falls at higher elevations.

And one more very important thing.

If the reporters pretended to be overly-excited about conditions even when they are actually sub-par… not only would that be intentionally misleading, but how would you then know when they really were genuinely excited by excellent conditions?

Being able to clearly distinguish between varying situations is one of the real advantages of not feeling any need to talk up or sugar-coat conditions. Remember, we’re not a glossy travel brochure selling you holidays and tours.

What we are trying to do is to provide our readership with honest, interesting and informative reports. And we will continue to do that.

If you didn’t read the previous general messages that we posted on our daily reports, you can find them here.

Thank you!

----

Niseko Avalanche Report:

Niseko base 6am: 20cm snowfall. Moiwa800m: -8.5℃, NE5m/s, 25cm snowfall. Annupuri1150m: -13℃, NW12m/s, 30-40cm, moderate development of snowdrifts. Hirafu1250m: -13℃, moderate NE wind, 20cm snowfall. Kamui cape lighthouse: NNW12m/s, 1014hPa, 2.5m waves.

The winter weather pattern brought a good amount of snowfall, averaging 25cm at west areas of 800m elevation. Snowdrifts are developing, but in slow speed. Looking at the snowfall transition, and snow observations, the general avalanche risk is low, however 40cm surface slab avalanches from Jan 29th layer are to be expected in Higashi=one steep slopes where slabs have formed under the past north-easterly wind. Caution in needed in open steep, cornices and knoll terrains. Better not party-run, go one by one and ride the fall-line, not across it. The new snow is a bit shallow, but good. Beware of losing control. Do not stay at valley bottoms.

Gates are scheduled to open. Listen to the ski patrol’s advice and please respect the Niseko Rules.

---

Resort specific opening news at time of writing (subject to change during the day):

Niseko Grand Hirafu
Niseko HANAZONO Resort
Niseko Village
Niseko Annupuri
All areas opening as planned at the start of the day.

---

Official resort snow depths as of Tuesday 31st January 2017:

Niseko Grand Hirafu & Hanazono
Top - 300cm
Base - 130cm

Niseko Village
Top - 230cm
Base - 140cm

Niseko Annupuri
Top - 275cm
Base - 135cm

---

Night skiing is planned until Monday 20th March 2017 at the Niseko Annupuri, Niseko Grand Hirafu and Niseko Village resort areas. There is no nighta in the Hanazono area.