Ok, time for a reality check
So you're coming from half way across the world to ski the world-famous Japow. Naturally, we support your decision. However, before you book, you should check to make sure you remember a few things of travelling for powder that are universally true.
In conclusion:
You are rolling the dice when you travel for powder, some of you will hit it big, most of you will have very good conditions, and some will strike out. But the thing is, if we could just switch on perfect conditions and have it available to us whenever we wanted to, we'd lose interest. That's because chasing powder is all about scarcity. The fact that the "perfect day" is scarce is what keeps us interested and once we've tasted perfection even for a moment, we'll travel across the globe searching for it until we find that perfect confluence of snow conditions and timing that we as skiers/riders live for. Every time we go skiing for powder we roll the dice--not knowing the outcome of a day is part of the appeal of skiing, so don't lose heart! Roll the dice and see what Ullr delivers!
- Traveling for powder is a bad idea. Why? Because powder gives, and powder takes away. Even in Japan, bad seasons, weeks or days do happen. If you're traveling for powder, remember that all skiers run the risk of striking out no matter where or when they travel.
- It does not snow in Japan/Hokkaido constantly. Even though we storm-chase as much as possible, sometimes there are just no good options anywhere within our range (our range is defined in the itinerary of your trip).
- Even in the peak season (conventionally January 15 to February 15), there is typically at least one day where it rains all the way up to the top of the mountain. This is a universal risk of skiing in Japan where temperatures are relatively moderate. The good news is that the rain typically gets covered up with lots of fresh snow.
- It typically snows A LOT in the areas we operate in. It snows a lot because it storms a lot. Many times these storms that bring the glorious powder also bring strong winds that can shut down all of the lifts everywhere due to blizzard conditions. We try to make the best of it when this happens, but this is also a universal risk of skiing in a constrained time-frame.
- While we do "storm chase" as much as possible, we are constrained by the limitations of our itinerary and hotel reservations. There may be instances where we have to leave our base accommodation and move to the next area as soon as a storm is coming in. If you're not willing to run the risk that the timing of the itinerary might not work with the storm systems during your trip, your best bet is to rent a Camper Van and travel around in real-time with the storms. Since our trips aren't Camper Van based, we'll be following our itinerary as described on our website and storm chasing within those limitations.
In conclusion:
You are rolling the dice when you travel for powder, some of you will hit it big, most of you will have very good conditions, and some will strike out. But the thing is, if we could just switch on perfect conditions and have it available to us whenever we wanted to, we'd lose interest. That's because chasing powder is all about scarcity. The fact that the "perfect day" is scarce is what keeps us interested and once we've tasted perfection even for a moment, we'll travel across the globe searching for it until we find that perfect confluence of snow conditions and timing that we as skiers/riders live for. Every time we go skiing for powder we roll the dice--not knowing the outcome of a day is part of the appeal of skiing, so don't lose heart! Roll the dice and see what Ullr delivers!
