REPORT

Though it may seem counterintuitive, the middle of the harsh winter season is a great time to head to the 2,307-meter summit of Yokoteyama. Temperatures dropped all the way down to -15°C due to radiative cooling, but it actually didn’t feel so cold since there was almost no wind and the sun was shining. During the ride up on the Yokoteyama Second and Third Sky Lifts, I was amazed by the growing snow monsters (trees covered in hoar frost, pictured) and the silvery-white world spreading out across the entire mountain.
[Yokoteyama・Second Slope]

I spoke with a family from Tokyo (pictured), who said, “We love your site! We come to Shiga Kogen every year with our family to ski the best powder snow.” In contrast to the Yokoteyama Ski Area, which faces west, the Shibutoge Ski Area faces east, and it is usually more difficult for hoar frost to form on the trees, but this season it is surprisingly abundant.
[Shibutoge・Simple Course]

The Simple (second photo), Gemut (pictured here), and Waver courses had groomed, soft powder snow conditions. A rooster tail of fluffy snow rose up behind me with each turn. The Yokoteyama King Course had a moderately firm, groomed powder snow surface, while the groomed surfaces of the First and Second slopes consisted of moderately soft powder snow.
[Shibu-Toge・Gemut Course]

I had a conversation with two skiers from Osaka (pictured), and they told me, “We love the Snownavi site! Yesterday there was fresh snow that had fallen up until the morning on top of the nice firm groomers, and today there’s new snow mixed in to the groomed slopes. Both made for great conditions!” Visitors were making their way to the Manten View Terrace (pictured) one after another to admire the snowy landscape from the highest Ski Resort in Japan.
[Yokoteyama・Manten View Terrace]

　　　
[Availability Information on 1/9 (Mon.)]
*All courses are available! (Except for Maruike A, Mt. Higashidate Olympic C, World Cup C (Upper Part), Mt. Nishidate Okabe C, Perfecter C, Philosophy C, LIPS C, Eternal C, Terakoya Connecting C)
*Available Lifts … Mt. Yokoteyama No.1 (8:30-) and totally 37 lifts.
*Lift Fees … 1 Day Ticket Adult JPY6,500, 13-18 & Over 60 y/o JPY5,600, 6-12 y/o JPY3,200 (Until 3/31)

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reported by Snownavi