REPORT

The early morning rain had stopped, and fog was rolling in and out at Usagidaira around 8:00 a.m. The Panorama Course had a loose, somewhat slushy groomed granular snow, and a thin mist was hovering over the snow surface. The snow coverage had been reduced to around half of the normal width at the starting part on the north side of the Panorama Course, but beyond that, the run opened up to a wide, groomed area with an even surface.
[Panorama Course]

On the steep slope at the end of Panorama (pictured), snow had again been purposefully gathered to ensure a skiable course width of about one grooming machine, and keep the route to the Panorama Pair boarding area open. By the looks of it, it just may last through this weekend. The Panorama Forest Road Course had ample snow from top to bottom, and the groomed granular snow conditions were good.
[Panorama Course]

On the upper portion of the ski resort, thick white fog reduced visibility at times. On he southern route of Usagidaira, which had been hastily groomed, along with the area paralleling the Kurobishi Quad, I could feel the thickness of the top layer of soft granular snow. At the beginning of the southern route of Usagidaira, I had to be careful to avoid some areas where the ground had been exposed by snowmelt.
[Usagidaira Slope]

I spoke with a man from Nagano (pictured, left), who told me, “I love your site! It looks like the snow might just last until Golden Week. My daughter goes to college in Okinawa, and she’s always complaining about the cold, so she only skis in the spring.” His daughter (pictured, right) added, “My first run of the season was on Wednesday, April 3rd!” I also ran into some Smoke-Free Ambassadors, whose motto is roughly, “No smokes on the slopes.” They told me they were fans of the Snownavi site and that they check our resort reports regularly.
[Usagidaira Slope]

[Hakuba Happo-one Details on 4/23 (Tue.)]
*Open Course(s) … Riesen Grat, Usagidaira, Kurobishi, Urakuro, Panorama
*Available Lifts … Gondola (8:00 a.m.-), Panorama Pair, Alpen Quad, Kurobishi No.2 Quad, Glat Quad
*Fees … 3/11 Spring Discount 1 Day Ticket Adult JPY5,500, Over 65 y/o JPY4,950, 6-17 y/o JPY2,500

*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