 |
 |
skijay's Journal
On Saturday we went to Iwatake resort in the hope that it would be the least crowded of the ski resorts in Hakuba, as it seems to be the least promoted. We're not sure how it was on other resorts but it was congested on Iwatake! Every Tokyoite and his family plus dogs (for some reason they let them run free around the resort, yes, even on the runs....) seemed to be up here for the weekend. We were basically playing dodgem all day long, and though this detracted somewhat from the experience, we still managed to have a fine day of boarding.
Iwatake is a short shuttle bus ride from Happo, and would be a lovely little resort if not for two things: One: There isn't enough snow. Conditions on lower slopes resemble Mt Buller in spring ie. lots of grass. This was even on a day when it was snowing lightly all day at the top. Two: There is only one food place at the summit, which is where all the chairlifts converge, making it a really easy mountain to get around, but a really shitty mountain to get some food at. You have to rush for a table whenever someone decides to leave.
It was snowing all day and we probably got a good 4 or 5cm of fresh snow, which was quite nice to ride on on the upper slopes. There were some fun runs which started off as a gentle slope through trees then became slightly steeper red slopes which were fun to bomb down, as long as you didn't hit anyone, or get hit by anyone (Skijay got taken out by a skiier this time). You can ski all 360 degrees of the mountain, and this is useful when it gets windy, like it did on Saturday - you can head to the other side of the mountain to get some shelter.
We did take a left turn off the green run, tempted by the "Experts only" sign, and found ourselves riding through a stash of deep powder. The bliss we experienced for three minutes did not make up for what came afterwards... Icy moguls!!! Moguls are bad enough when they are soft snow, but when you hit a mogul run made out of huge bumps of hard ice on a steep black slope, it's really shitty to be a boarder!!! Unfortunately, mogul runs abound in Hakuba, because it was the site of the Winter Olympics. Boarders be warned - Most black runs will probably turn out to be moguls only!
All in all we had a reasonable day at Iwatake though we probably wouldn't return in a hurry. It's probably worth a look, though.
Iwatake is a short shuttle bus ride from Happo, and would be a lovely little resort if not for two things: One: There isn't enough snow. Conditions on lower slopes resemble Mt Buller in spring ie. lots of grass. This was even on a day when it was snowing lightly all day at the top. Two: There is only one food place at the summit, which is where all the chairlifts converge, making it a really easy mountain to get around, but a really shitty mountain to get some food at. You have to rush for a table whenever someone decides to leave.
It was snowing all day and we probably got a good 4 or 5cm of fresh snow, which was quite nice to ride on on the upper slopes. There were some fun runs which started off as a gentle slope through trees then became slightly steeper red slopes which were fun to bomb down, as long as you didn't hit anyone, or get hit by anyone (Skijay got taken out by a skiier this time). You can ski all 360 degrees of the mountain, and this is useful when it gets windy, like it did on Saturday - you can head to the other side of the mountain to get some shelter.
We did take a left turn off the green run, tempted by the "Experts only" sign, and found ourselves riding through a stash of deep powder. The bliss we experienced for three minutes did not make up for what came afterwards... Icy moguls!!! Moguls are bad enough when they are soft snow, but when you hit a mogul run made out of huge bumps of hard ice on a steep black slope, it's really shitty to be a boarder!!! Unfortunately, mogul runs abound in Hakuba, because it was the site of the Winter Olympics. Boarders be warned - Most black runs will probably turn out to be moguls only!
All in all we had a reasonable day at Iwatake though we probably wouldn't return in a hurry. It's probably worth a look, though.
2 Comments
|
monkeyking
on 27 Feb 2007
Dude, man made moguls aren't a natural product of the mountain. It's like digging holes in the road for the sheer joy of busting your car on them.
|
|
jnrpsycho
on 25 Feb 2007
problems with moguls? Try skiing! :)
|
Like to comment?
SIGN UP for a free account!
skijay's Posts
Transport around HakubaBy skijay on 4 Mar 2007
Hakuba info from other boarders and skiiers
By skijay on 4 Mar 2007
Hakuba costs
By skijay on 3 Mar 2007
