REPORT

A moving high-pressure system caused temperatures to plummet across the prefecture overnight and into the morning today, 10/3 (Tue.), with 26 out of 30 observation sites in Nagano recording temperatures below 10°C, and a full 29 sites recording their lowest temperatures of the season. Today I ran into a pair of hikers from Tokyo and Aichi on the trail who told me they were fans of the Snownavi site, and added, “We’re heading up for a dayhike of Mt. Karamatsu. We’ve got some fog here at the moment, but hopefully we can emerge above the clouds if we get up a little higher.” In fact, we did break through the fog around the level of the No. 2 Cairn, and it turned out to be a lovely and refreshing autumn day.
[The Trail to Mt. Karamatsu・Happo-ike to Shita-no-Kanba]

A regular visitor and resident of Hakuba Village approached me commenting, “The cooler temperatures over the past few days have really sped up the progress of the autumn leaves.” Around the Happo-ike pond, the colors splashed across the slope in front of the jagged ridgeline of the Kaerazu-no-Ken were a source of delight. Because of the cold, I took my windbreaker out of my pack and put it on as I took a break.
[The Trail to Mt. Karamatsu・Happo-ike to Shita-no-Kanba]

I spoke with two women from Osaka (pictured), who told me, “Last night we stayed at a mountain hut for the first time, and the sunrise this morning was so beautiful.” The hut the two ladies stayed at, the Karamatsu-dake Chojo-sanso, experienced the first sub-freezing temperatures of the season on 10/2 (Mon.), and will remain open until 10/21 (Sat.). [The [The Trail to Mt. Karamatsu・Happo-ike to Shita-no-Kanba]

In the Shita-no-Kanba forest, the leaves of the area’s dakekanba (Erman’s birch) were turning yellow and the kaede maples were a mix of yellow and orange. Slightly higher up at the entrance of the Kami-no-Kanba forest, the nanakamado (Japanese rowan, pictured) were at their beautiful fall peak. Despite it being a weekday, the area around the Happo-ike pond was full of visitors around 11:30 when I passed through on my descent.
[The Trail to Mt. Karamatsu・Shita-no-Kanba to Kami-no-Kanba]

　　
[Happo-One Nature Trail Opening Information]
＊Business Period … 6/3 (Sat.) & 6/4 (Sun.), 6/10 (Sat.) ～ 11/5/2023 (Sun.)
＊Business Hours … Happo Alpen Line will open at 8:00, on 7/8 to 7/14 at 7:30～, on 7/15～7/17、7/22、7/23、7/29、7/30 at 6:30, weekdays from 7/18 at 7:00. Kurobishi No.3 Pair will open at 8:15～ on 7/1 to 7/7,  on 7/8 to 7/14 at 7:45～、7/15～7/17、7/22、7/23、7/29、7/30 at 4:30～、 weekdays from 7/18 at 7:15.
＊Fees … Round trip use of the Happo Alpen Line / Adults JPY3,300, Children JPY2,100 → Advance Discount Tickets Adults JPY2,950, Children JPY1,800! (No need to exchange tickets! Go staraight to the Gondola), Kurobishi Line / Adults JPY1,900, Children JPY1,140

＊This report is updated once or twice a week.
＊To Visitors Requesting Original Data of Our Photographs

reported by Snownavi