REPORT

We’re down to the last week of business for the winter season at Hakuba Iwatake. Strong winds were blowing from the southwest this morning, driving the rain that began falling around 8:00 a.m., however, by 9:30 a.m., the rain had almost ceased and sunlight was reaching the slopes. On the Village Side of the resort, the Hakuba Iwatake Snowboard School was conducting some last-minute training (pictured) at 10:00, just before their scheduled “TECH.TEST” and snowboard exam.
[Up Bahn]

I spoke with an instructor (pictured, center), who told me, “In the pre-test training, we do a final check of the candidates’ boarding ability, confirm the starting and finishing points of the test run, and give them advice on the evaluation criteria.” The groomed Sunny Valley, Kometsuga, and Up Bahn (pictured) had a thick layer of loose, granular snow, making it somewhat difficult for my skis to slide.
[Up Bahn]

I had a chat on the slopes with a husband from Shizuoka Prefecture (pictured, right) and his wife (pictured, left), who is working part-time at Iwatake. They told me, “We love your site! With all the snow we got last weekend, there is so much snow now. It’s hard to believe it’s mid-March!” I was able to repeat comfortable turns on the East Slope (pictured) and the South Slope, which were both groomed with moderately loose, granular snow surfaces.
[East Slope]

The gondola shut down at 9:15 a.m. due to the strong winds (*but later resumed service at 1:20 p.m.). I was greeted by a young man from Hakuba (pictured, right), who told me he was a fan of Snownavi, and added, “We skied the South Slope, but the headwind was so strong that my sister almost couldn’t move forward, so we’re taking a break.” By the way, today is Ski Children’s Day, and many families were on the slopes.
[HAKUBA MOUNTAIN HARBOR]

　　　
[Hakuba Iwatake Snow Field Details on 3/17 (Sun.)]
*All Courses are OPEN (Except for North)
*Available Lifts … Gondola (8:00-), and totally 8 lifts.
*Fees … 1 Day Ticket … Adult Weekends & Holidays JPY5,200, Weekday JPY5,000, 6-12 y/o Weekend & Holidays JPY3,200, Weekday JPY3,000, 60-69 y/o JPY4,800, Over 70 y/o JPY4,600 *A preschooler will be free per adult.
　
＊Printable Rental Discount Coupons!
Carving Ski・Snowboard 1-Day Rental Set JPY3,000 / Outerwear JPY2,500!
Carving Ski・Snowboard High Performance Model Rental JPY500 OFF!
Kid’s Ski・Snowboard 1-Day Rental Set JPY2,500 / Outerwear JPY1,500!
　　
*Request for the original data of our photographs
　

reported by Snownavi