International (Europe/Japan/Southern Hemisphere) Japan Hokkaido 2018 Trip Report

[Rainbow Jenny]

I met the Western ski patroller at Teine last year, he was really nice. I looked for him last week when I skied there but didn't see him. No visit to Teine would be complete without visiting the fish man, I love how he flips the cooked fish into the tray really fast with chopsticks, when he is done with your order. He's a showman!

Steve is mostly based out of Olympia Zone instead of Highlands this season. Turns out he was in the same Japanese conversation class with my brother and sis-in-law in the past, had patrolled at Mammoth and Crystal (WA), and grew up about 10 miles from where I lived in LA.

 

[Mattadvproject]

Day 8: Jan 11th – Kokusai

It was just Bob and I and the forecast was for new snow from the previous night and clearing up to bluebird. It was time to head back to Kokusai then. The winds had been pretty big overnight and I was concerned about windslab, large amounts of new snow in the last 24hours and then temperature increase. I was keen to show Bob our favorite zone and be first out there, but if need be, we would miss out the open face at the start and just hit the ridgeline. We paid the 1,400 JPY for a single ride gondola ticket.

On our way out we saw some natural avalanches on some similar aspects (same aspects but higher, more wind-exposed and steeper), but still a red flag for us. That confirmed our intention to miss the open face and go straight to the main ridge. It took about 35 minutes to get to the highpoint and then over the ridge. Sure enough we were the first ones there and the whole line lay untouched before us. It was pretty special. We skied the top of the ridge and then as we felt a little more confident with the snow, dropped over the edge and down a stepper side-face. It was dreamy. Boot top, light, untouched powder. We were in heaven. We skied the first (steeper section one at a time) and then hit the lower, mellower lines together. It was awesome. Then we got to the edge of the ridge and crossed the creek. The hike up the other side was hard work, at times it was hip deep and it was hard going to break trail. We finally made it to our traverse line out and then it was pretty easy going.

That lap took about 2.5 hours so then we went in for an early lunch. After lunch, we bought a 3 hour ticket and went out for a couple more laps. This time we skied the sub-ridge that only takes about 10 minutes to get to. It was untouched which was surprising as it is so easy to get to. We liked it so much we went and did it again. We only did 3 laps but they were quality and we didn’t cross a single trail all day (I definitely did a lot of breaking trail that day, but it was worth it).

That night we met up with Claire and Jeb. Claire had some NZ ski instructor friends in town and we had some drinks at the brewery and then hit up a tiny little lamb BBQ place. Then we headed out to a karaoke bar in Otaru that I had never been to before. It was fun. We had our own private booth for 4 hours plus all you could drink beers. We got out of there just after mid-night. I was pretty tired the next day, that’s for sure.
























- Matt

 

[Mattadvproject]

Some video's of the day skiing with Bob Gleason in Kokusai. Bluebird, fresh powder, zero tracks....... watch these in HD!





Fun times!

- Matt

 

[Mattadvproject]

Day 9: Jan 12th – Travel to Chitose

After the late night and skiing hard and breaking trail all week, I was pretty tired. I decide to take a rest day. Bob took a taxi to Asari where he met up with Ella and Julian for a ski. They had an epic day of touring out to our favorite zone and found some really good snow. I enjoyed some rest and caught up on work. Then at 1:15pm I went to Kokusai and picked up Bob at 2pm.

Then it was a couple of hours drive to Chitose and check in to the ANA Crowne. We tried to go out and find a nice place to eat. We found what we thought was a cool Japanesy place but when we got in there, they gave us a booth in the smoking section and it wasn’t long before we were choking on smoke and had to leave. We then found this uninspiring looking fast-foodie type restaurant that specialized in hamburger (mincemeat) steaks. They did have regular steaks and for $15, we actually had a really nice meal. Then it was off for an early night and get ready for picking up Jeremy and my first guest Gary. Jeremy missed his first flight and was coming in at a similar time to Gary so I picked them both up and drove them back to the hotel.

Day 11: Jan 13th – Pickup day

Jeremy had 2 guests to pick up and they were late, so I ended up picking up my 3 other guests first and then we hit the road. Zach needed to buy a Mammut airbag cylinder and I had organized one for him at the Mammut store in the Sapporo Factory. It was a pretty cool mall and they have 1 floor devoted to ski and outdoor brands. He had an air cylinder in the US but didn’t bring it as you cannot fly with a full cylinder and the US ones can’t be refilled in Japan. You have to either rent or buy one in Japan. The Japanese cylinder are compatible with US bags but are smaller and run at a higher pressure.

It was a little bit of a mission to find the store but we got what we needed and then we were on our way again. Thankfully Sapporo is kind of on the way to Chitose and it wasn’t a massive diversion. We made it to the Grand Park Otaru by 4pm and then everyone could unwind and unpack. Then we headed to the mall next door and had a nice inexpensive meal. Finally we finished off with the avi presentation in our room and then we were done.

- Matt

 

[Mattadvproject]

Day 12: Jan 14th – Kokusai

Day 1 with the Pugski crew! We have Susan, Gary, Zach and his buddy Paul from Boston. There are 3 skiers and 1 snowboarder. Plenty of room in the van then! We had the whole group together and it was day one on the mountain. The report was for moderate snow showers overnight (8cm) and then clearing up to bluebird later in the morning. The winds were light and it would be a beautiful day. We were up early and made it to Kokusai around 840am. We bought a full day pass and then got in line.

We made it to the top and were the first one’s out of the gate. I decided we should do a quick lap and hike on our second run. The snow was great, the previous tracks had not been fully filled in but in places where you hit the previous fresh snow as well, it was above the knee. I got a couple of nice faceshots and there was some decent hooting and hollering from the rest of the group. We took it slow on the way out so I could show in detail the line out. Then it was time for a hike.

We saw a couple of groups heading out and the skin track was somewhat busy. There were a couple of Japanese groups heading to the same place as us. We looked at the open face and it looked mint. There were still a few old tracks sticking out but plenty of untouched lines to be had. I dropped in first and skied the same sub-ridge that had been so good. Then I filmed the others coming down one at a time. There were some epic faceshots and with the blue sky, we got some amazing footage. What a run.

Then it was time to skin back to the main ridge. That didn’t take long, maybe 8 minutes before we could take the skins off. We traversed over 2 smaller ridges and then found a really nice untouched face. The skiing was really nice, soft and deep. We enjoyed great skiing all the way to the creek and then made the crossing which was well-established. It’s nice not to have to break trail all the time.

We had some lunch and then it was time to do some more beacon training. We went up on a side-chairlift and then found an open spot with untouched snow, out of the way. We stepped out the area to compact the snow and then I demoed a single rescuer, 1 beacon scenario. I got the guys to practice and then we got disturbed by a young mountain ops guy on a sled who was concerned that we were too close to the boundary. I tried hard to tell him that we were just doing beacon practice and that we weren’t causing any problems. He wanted us to get back on the trail but I persisted by saying we weren’t skiing, just training. He really didn’t understand us but finally gave up on us. I sensed someone official who spoke better English would be sent our way soon…..

Sure enough, about 5 minutes later, I ski patroller turned up. I waved and said hello (got to be friendly in these situations) and he came over to us. I thought I recognized his face and sure enough, it was a guy I had friended on Facebook. I thought he was a guide and not a ski patroller as well. I think he thought we were skiing in the out-of-bounds area with the ski resort but I assured him we had been skiing in the backcountry. He was ok with that. We chatted a little and after a while he got bored and took off. We worked till 3pm and then it started to get really cold. We headed down and back to the baselodge.

I had jokingly said to the crew that I was worried that we had had such a great start to the trip and no everyone would have too big of expectations with the quality of skiing we had had at the start! Hopefully we can keep finding the goods!


@SBrown


@SBrown


@SBrown


@Zach attack!


@Zach


Paul


Paul


Paul

- Matt

 

[Mattadvproject]

Got some cracking footage of the Pugs in action!


- Me


@SBrown


- @Zach


- Paul

 

[Monique]

I have a semi-offtopic question.

I would love to visit Japan, but I'm worried that I won't be able to eat! I can't have large amounts of gluten (think wheat noodles, tempura), although fortunately I can get away with regular soy sauce (probably unwise, but I assume that would be impossible to avoid).

I know most people don't pay attention if they don't have to, but any guesses on how easy it would be to eat this way on a ski trip?

 

[SBrown]

Can't you do rice? There is quite a bit of rice in Japan....

 

[Monique]

Can't you do rice? There is quite a bit of rice in Japan....

Yes! I guess what I wonder is, if you're at a place that serves ramen, will there typically also be rice options? There seems to be quite a lot of ramen (and it looks delicious!).

 

[SBrown]

Yes! I guess what I wonder is, if you're at a place that serves ramen, will there typically also be rice options? There seems to be quite a lot of ramen (and it looks delicious!).

Not sure, but I will pay better attention. The main problem is the language barrier, if you are really trying to figure out what's in what. I don't know your exact diagnosis, but I will say that bread and pasta that I have eaten internationally (mostly Europe, but here too) do not affect me like wheat products in the US do. There is something wrong with our food supply, and this isn't the place to get into it, but you might be surprised that gluten sensitivities kinda go away when not eating at home.

 

[Monique]

Not sure, but I will pay better attention. The main problem is the language barrier, if you are really trying to figure out what's in what. I don't know your exact diagnosis, but I will say that bread and pasta that I have eaten internationally (mostly Europe, but here too) do not affect me like wheat products in the US do. There is something wrong with our food supply, and this isn't the place to get into it, but you might be surprised that gluten sensitivities kinda go away when not eating at home.

I have heard that, and have definitely wondered if I'd avoid baguettes and croissants if I went to France, for example. Would be a shame.

I had some cards about gluten in various languages, but I think I tossed them out. Anyway, it's possible to order translation cards for this.

 

[SBrown]

I have heard that, and have definitely wondered if I'd avoid baguettes and croissants if I went to France, for example. Would be a shame.

I had some cards about gluten in various languages, but I think I tossed them out. Anyway, it's possible to order translation cards for this.

or translation apps on your phone! They are great, just type in what you need (or use the mic), and something hopefully close to it pops up on your screen.

 

[karlo]

if you're at a place that serves ramen, will there typically also be rice options?

Yes, if you are not at a ramen restaurant. In Japan, one can often find restaurants that serve just one type of food. However, at a ski resort, that is far less likely. You will not have a problem.

Oh, and if you do come across a ramen shop that only serves ramen, you will probably find very, very close by, other shops that offer something else, like just yakitori, or just sushi, (or, just eel, yummy)

Oh, oh, it's also not difficult to avoid soy sauce. Don't use the typical Japanese restaurant in the States as your reference.

 

[Monique]

Yes, if you are not at a ramen restaurant. In Japan, one can often find restaurants that serve just one type of food. However, at a ski resort, that is far less likely. You will not have a problem.

Oh, and if you do come across a ramen shop that only serves ramen, you will probably find very, very close by, other shops that offer something else, like just yakitori, or just sushi, (or, just eel, yummy)

Oh, oh, it's also not difficult to avoid soy sauce. Don't use the typical Japanese restaurant in the States as your reference.

All excellent news!

I didn't commit to any trips - anywhere - this season because I still don't think my knee is reliable enough, but it's getting there. Next season, it's on, baby!

 

[SkiNurse]

Can't you do rice? There is quite a bit of rice in Japan....

 

[Mattadvproject]

Day 13: Jan 15th – Tengu

The weather forecast was not looking too good with high speeds and relatively warm temps (rain down low) I was thinking about Teine. Unfortunately the Teine FB page was saying that the upper lifts might be shut down so it was too big of a gamble to go there. I decided on Tengu just because it was close and we could at least get some decent avi safety training done. They were calling for some rain there but in the morning, it was still snowing so up we went.

The GPS went haywire as per usual but we found our way up. By 845am, we were one of the first cars in the parking lot. We bought full day passes and jumped in the tram. There was a massive group of tourists onboard from Thailand and they were very excited to meet us and pose for photographs with us. At the top I wanted to check out some of the open trees and went to the glades next to the second groomed run. It had filled in a bit and in places where it hadn’t been skied, it was knee deep. The snow was quite heavy though.

On the next lap we went into some more trees a little more to the right and we found even better snow. Then on the next lap we went all the way across to the far skier’s left. Here we found completely untouched snow and the skiing was quite nice. We did a few laps in there before heading in for lunch around noon, up at the top of the tram. I showed the guys to the ski museum and the goblin mask museum and we took a few obligatory photos. That was fun and different for the group.

Then after lunch we did some more beacon practice. We were still working on refining single burial practice with one rescuer and by getting more mileage and constant reinforcement, the group was able to make really good progress. There were some decent improvements from the previous day and everyone learned from their individual feedback.

Then it was time for two rescuers looking for one beacon (the beacon was inside my pack but buried quite deep) and this was a chance to see how the individuals would work together as teams for the first time. All the practice from the single burials was coming to play and I found the partnerships communicated and worked well together. Both groups found their beacons quickly. Next we have to work on multiple rescuers with multiple beacons. We’ll try and work on that tomorrow afternoon.

That evening we went into the mall adjoining the hotel for some sushi. There is a popular looking sushi train on the second floor, near the hotel so we went there. The place is packed on the weekends and on a Monday we had no problems getting a table. The food was really good. They had a constant stream of sushi and we were able to order our own made to order items as well. The waitress spoke a little English and that helped us a lot. She gave us a useful explanation on the ordering system which was very helpful. I spent about $28 and had 9 plates and 2 beers. It was really good. Back to Kokusai tomorrow after the end of the storm. Should be good.


Meeting some very enthusiastic Thai people on the tram to Tengu.



The Japanese snow snakes are everywhere, apparently they like @SBrown.



@SBrown posing for her Japan Police social media profile....



Paul in Tengu



@Big Salad, @SBrown and Paul in the goblin mask museum in Tengu.

View attachment 37532

- Matt

 

[Ron]

Not sure, but I will pay better attention. The main problem is the language barrier, if you are really trying to figure out what's in what. I don't know your exact diagnosis, but I will say that bread and pasta that I have eaten internationally (mostly Europe, but here too) do not affect me like wheat products in the US do. There is something wrong with our food supply, and this isn't the place to get into it, but you might be surprised that gluten sensitivities kinda go away when not eating at home.

GMO Not permitted in EU and most other places in the world

 

[Pete in Idaho]

Thanks for the pic's looks great.

 

[Rainbow Jenny]

Jenny, I'm sure Nii-san and I have common acquaintances. If you have a chance, stop by Toryu ( bottom of hirafu) and check out takanashi-san's shop. Loved tour laps at Chise!!! A little sad to hear about cat access though. Nothing is that hard to get to. Glad you're having a great experience!!!

I visited Takanashi-san’s shop and met his staff early on without realizing it. What a fantastic selection of gloves!

 

[Rainbow Jenny]

And while Pugskiers are busy powder chasing and I’m now bedridden with a respiratory bug, I’ll add some gourmet foodie photos and dedicate them to @KingGrump &Mrs and @Tony S. introducing “tonkatsu,” Japanese fried pork cutlet:

Stacked loaves of bread



Bread crumb making



Copper deep frying pots, chef dipping a giant shrimp tempura



Grinding freshly toasted sesame seeds for tonkatsu sauce, scent released totally wet one’s appetite



Two version of Tonkatsu sauce with the cutest wooden laddles, reminiscent of the larger ones for hand washing before entering a temple



Pickled side dishes are delish, my favorite is the middle gobo/burdock with a mild ginseng flavor



Nine-ounce fried pork cutlet and 5 giant fried oysters to crisp perfection



Forgot to get photos of fried multi-grained rice with scallops, red miso soup with claims.

Complimentary refill on everything except the meat/seafood. Cost per person around USD15.