REPORT

This morning seemed to be the calm before the impending storm, or rather, the once-in-a-decade cold air mass expected to hit the area with heavy snow. There was blue sky and sunshine at the base area of the mountain around the time of the resort’s opening. However, as I went up to the Mountain Side of Iwatake (pictured), there were occasional strong gusts of northwest wind, and snow clouds were gradually forming from the direction of the Northern Alps.
[South]

The South (pictured) and East slopes were immaculately groomed, and the wet snow surfaces were nice and firm. I noticed a number of visitors carving sharp turns and repeating runs using the 5Sen Lift. VIEW C was groomed with well-packed groomed snow from the top to the middle of the course, and harder, groomed wet snow on the lower half.
[South Slope]

Although the officially-announced base on the Village Side of the resort was only 25 cm, the condition of the Sunny Valley Course (pictured), which is the main course back down to the base, has improved considerably due to the heavy snowfall from 1/20 (Fri.) to 1/21 (Sat.) with the help of artificial snowfall. As a whole, the slope was groomed with tightly packed granular snow condtions and some clumps of snow scattered across the surface. (*There were some soil-stained areas in the early stages as well.)
[Sunny Valley Course]

There was even enough snow at the end of the downhill course just in front of the gondola (the former Paradise Slope, pictured) to allow the groomers to go through. In other news, we would like to remind you that Hakuba’s famous “Iwatake Thanks Festival” will be held this weekend on 1/28 (Sat.)! Please come by and check it out!
[Sunny Valley Course]

　
[Hakuba Iwatake Snow Field Availability Information on 1/24 (Tue.)]
*All courses are available. (*Except for SAWA C, HIKAGE, DANGAN, North, VIEW α)
*Available Lifts … Gondola (8:00-), totally 6 lifts
*Fees … Adult JPY4,800, Over 60 y/o JPY4,500, Over 70 y/o JPY4,200, 6-12 y/o JPY3,000 (Until 3/19) *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!

reported by Snownavi