Hokkaido - Japan -Powder Journey

Dates Winter 2018 TBD

$4200 Cdn

 

 

 

The Trip

Join us on this back-country winter adventure in the place everyone is dreaming of: Japan and her mystical powder. Hokkaido - famed for its endless supplies of light perfect powder, magical hot springs and numerous mountain playgrounds to choose from. Bring in the New Year, with style, as we head to the North Island of Japan for 7 days of skiing. Some days we will use some of the region’s resorts and tramways to whisk us high into the mountains - from which we will seek out great lines without ever using skins - or perhaps only for a short distance. Other days will be pure back-country - where our ascents will always end in a fabulous ski run well away from the crowds.  

 

 

Hokkaido - Japan

Hokkaido tree skiing in ‘blower’ waist deep powder what people dream of. While not as steep as Hakuba, Hokkaido boasts of its light snow and magical tree skiing. Cold air from Siberia gathers moisture from the Sea of Japan and deposits it in a seemingly non-stop supply in the Hokkaido Powder Belt. Resets of 20-40cm a day are not uncommon. The mountains of the north can be characterized by perfect tree skiing and volcanoes. Access to the skiing will be a combination of lift / cablecar and climbing from the valley bottom.

 

Japanese culture in the North is influenced by the remoteness of this land - as well as the Ainu or indigenous people of this island. The animistic influences to Buddhism, rituals of Onsen - or hot spring, and love of good food and sake ensure that your cultural experience of Japan will be rich and fulfilling.  

 

 

Who is this trip for?

We envision this ski trip for people who love to ski powder and are willing to spend some energy climbing in the backcountry to make their way to the top of powder ski lines.  Both climbing skins and chairlifts will be our friends for these 7 days.  We will combine days of pure backcountry skiing with days riding the lifts high into the mountains with only small boot packs or skins to access the back-country adjacent to Hokkaido’s numerous resorts.

 

Split boarders, telemarkers or skiers are all welcome.  All skiing / riding is done on back-country gear - giving us the flexibility to explore seldom visited places and enjoy powder laps!  Just make sure those boards are super fat - or over 110 underfoot.  As with all Aspire Mountain Journeys trips, you will only travel in style.   While this trip is designed to be done in conjunction with the Hakuba portion - people are welcome to join for week one only.