REPORT

This morning it was raining on and off at the Nagasaka Gondola base station, but eventually changed to snow shortly after I boarded the gondola. The groomed Paradise Slope (pictured) had a moderately compact, wet snow surface topped with about 3 to 5 cm of fresh snow that felt a little heavy.
[Paradise Slope]

I spoke with a snowboarder from Joetsu City in Niigata Prefecture, who told me, “The snow quality here at Nozawa Onsen is much better than the Niigata Resorts. The Yamabiko area was especially good.” The Yamabiko D Course (pictured) had a groomed, wet snow surface with a “powdery” feel that was moderately packed. The feeling of sliding through the 10 cm of fresh snow was nice.
[Yamabiko D Course]

I met a student from Kyoto on the Uenotaira Slope, who said, “I came to Nozawa Onsen for an overnight skiing trip. I’m looking forward to hot spring hopping around Nozawa’s famous onsen baths!” The busy Uenotaira Slope’s groomed, moderately packed wet snow surface was covered with about 5 cm of fresh snow. My skis slid well, and I was able to turn comfortably and in control.
[Uenotaira Slope]

The Buna Bayashi Course, Yunomine B Course, and Mizunashi B Course, which combined are one of the routes down to the Nagasaka Gondola, had moderately firm, groomed wet snow surfaces topped off with about 5 cm of fresh snow. Visibility thankfully improved as I entered the Ushikubi Course from the Mizunashi B Course. It was difficult conditions on the Ushikubi Course (pictured) due to the large, irregular moguls formed from hard, wet snow.
[Ushikubi Course]
　　
*The “Winter Lantern Festival” will be held on the Nagasaka Slope on 3/4 (Sat.), along with a torchlight run open to the public, for which registration is ongoing.

　
[Nozawa Onsen Availability Information on 3/2 (Thu.)]
*All courses are available! (Except for Yunomine A)
*Available Lifts … Nagasaka Gondola (8:30-), Hikage Gondola (8:30-) and totally 16 lifts.
*Lift Fees … Adult JPY6,000, Under 15 y/o JPY3,600, Over 60 y/o JPY4,800 (Until 4/2)

*Click here to purchase photos found in this report

reported by Snownavi