*0cm has fallen in the last 24 hours in Niseko. At 08:00 today the temperature was 4°C. We hate to say we told you so but….it is an awful day here in Niseko with heavy rain. We had very light rainfall from around 3pm yesterday and by 7pm it had turned into heavy rain and this has continued through out the night into this morning. The whole country is in the grip of this battle between a strong high sitting relatively stable to the south east of Japan and low pressure systems coming in from the north west. Unfortunately for us unseasonably warm air is being sucked up from the south and that is all she wrote! There are parts of Hokkaido that have had more than double the monthly annual rainfall for March in less than one day!
What does this mean for us snow lovers here in Niseko? Well…. thankfully we have had a bumper season and have a huge base of snowfall so skiing and snowboarding on the runs will be fantastic for weeks yet. Overall though it is presently +1 even at the top of “the peak” Mt.Annupuri which means it is raining even up there! The warm temperatures and rain will undoubtably have a serious impact on the back country terrain with the avalanche risk becoming extreme. The week ahead is looking warm and at this rate the snow will be melting rapidly. Fingers crossed for a cold 2nd half of March!
Yuck, 9 March 2018
Useful information from other places
- Accumulative snow fall to date in Niseko, 1382.5cm
- Snow depth at the peak, 515cm
- Snow depth at the base, 220cm
- Real time lift operations.
- JMA’s six hour precipitation forecast, possibly the most accurate weather map
- Snow Forecast 6 day weather summary
- The latest Niseko avalanche report.
Live Web Cam from Hirafu Village
Snow Forecast
360niseko Snow Station Readings Disclaimer
The 360niseko’s snow station for the 2017-18 season is in Higashiyama at 200m *The Hirafu Gondola is at 305m. Please be aware that this new reading is NOT in Hirafu village but a few kilometers down the road. There is always a deviation how and where the snow falls – the area is famous for micro climates and mini weather patterns. Some days there may be 10cm in Annupuri and 25cm in Hanazono and vice versa – some days 30cm of fresh snowfall comes down everywhere!! Altitude plays a big part as well so please don’t take the 360niseko snow readings as being definitive – the readings are what is outside our house on the ground.
