Hokkaido 2017

9th Feb - 27th/28th Feb

Melbourne -> Tokyo -> Sapporo -> Niseko -> Makkari -> Rusutsu -> Furano -> Osaka -> Kyoto -> Tokyo -> (Kuala Lumpa) -> Melbourne

Melbourne to Tokyo and flew straight through to Sapporo. Hit the Sapporo winter and ice festival, beer factory and Mount Moiwa ropeway. Bussed from Sapporo through to Hirafu for 5 nights. Injury day 2 Dane's MCL says goodbye, grade 3 tear and game over. Amazing night skiing and we did a great job cooking Japanese delicacies. Moved to rusutsu for 3 nights, tremendous tree skiing and some fairly flat spots. Bussed over to Furano for 4 nights or so cutting our trip short for Dane's sake. Gondala > Ropeway. Due to work related conferences flew to KIK, Osaka for a couple of nights. Checked out the sky garden for Dinner, Dotonbori and Tsutentaku. Eventually joined the rest of the crew in Kyoto. Reminder to prepare for 7 different kinds of express trains. (semi-exporess, occaisonal-express, express, weekly express, semi-local-express, express-express). Definitely have some om curry and see the Fushimi inari taisha, Yakisoba was already well received near Dainichichō. Nozomi'd back to Tokyo back to the revered Paulette town. Used up all the suica to get to the airport and flew direct with Q for one and business via Malaysia for the other. 

Flying into New Chitose, Hokkaido

Sapporo ice festival, Coke B Bear

Sponsored by Stihl

The festival started in the 50s by some Uni students, the next year the army got invovld and it hasn't stopped. This thing is about 20m high. 

Australia's entry... Turns out it's the Opera house on top. Would've been much better if they had oriented the Opera House in 90 degrees. We only realised it was an opera House on the second visit. 

Can't get away from the Donald

Mount Moiwa ropeway and lookout. 

Sapporo Beer Museum

Black, Classic, Wheat

Found a lucy goosey

NISEKO

Made it to Australia's largest ski resort. 

Snowing, fine western expensive accommodation and ready to hit the slopes

Lot of terrain to explore

Bit of fun heading down to holiday

Pretty quiet about

Gondalas + night = amazing. Although - this little bit of snow here on the run 'green' would haunt Dane's dreams. 

Run of the trip. Night skiing, empty runs, soft snow under the quad heading to the Super.

Nearing the transition to night, everyone goes home

Night day 2

MCL will self destruct in T-1minutes

beautiful blue skies

Heading to Annupuri

-10 degrees. Didn't have too many cold days at Niseko, they were saved for Furano and Rusutsu.. -30

Hourly full body ice session

Playing a game of Cat and Mouse to catch P and MJ

Locked and housebound

Sending the troops off for a board

Mt Yotei - mini Fuji

RUSUTSU

Scraping the days snow

Another fine morning, 50cm snowdrifts

Daily snow clean

HANABI - You are pretty good, but dont quit your day job

Heading to Isola

Bluebird fresh snow

Ice Therapy every second run

A pretty strange place with two sides to the hill. 

FURANO

The lovely Furano pension

Paulette off on first lifts. Watch out for the incoming snow groomers!

Furano city

Better than the previous attempt at Hirafu

Another fine morning

Another day inside

Hot pot - downtown furano

She went back to the very top to get a picture for me!

OSAKA/KYOTO

Poki building

Skygarden dinner

1...2.....3...55.....77..200....266... okay fine there are more than 1000

Why do they wear bibs?

Cooking tension

Sitting on the floor, but lots of room (Y). Great Yakisoba

Hanabi

Plum Blossums... two weeks early

Omcurry lunch

Omcurry dinner

Thunderchoc icecream?

Nozomi

Another omcurry lunch

Museum of Takiyoki in Odaiba. Next time we dont need to go back to Odaiba. 

MALAYSIA

NISEKO HIRAFU/VILLAGE/ANNUPURI/HANAZONO

Favourite Run? Super Night

Longest Run? 5.0km Holiday from the top

Fastest Speed? 75 km/h

Total Distance Skiied? 100.0 km

Total Vertical? 18,100 m

Average Rating? 4/5*
Snowfall? ~ 10cm

RUSUTSU

Favourite Run?  Isola. Trees looked nice

Longest Run? 5.5km Isola Grand to East Tignes

Fastest Speed? 54 km/h

Total Distance Skiied? 20.0 km

Total Vertical? 3,000 m

Average Rating? 3/5*
Snowfall? ~ 40cm

FURANO

Favourite Run? Training B

Longest Run? 5.9km Link run to Rinkan to Pension

Fastest Speed? 60 km/h

Total Distance Skiied? 22.0 km

Total Vertical? 4,000 m

Average Rating? 3/5*
Snowfall? ~ 40cm

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