Rainy season is “officially” over & the long hot Tokyo summer has set in. Temperatures in the mid to upper-30s & lots & lots of concrete = not much fun at all. The good news is that Morino Lodge & all our Deluxe Chalets are open for the summer & Hakuba is full of fun & relaxing ways to cool off. Here` a list of Morino`s top 10 things to do in the Hakuba summer; 10 –Take a drive down the Azumino Art Line – With stunning views of the alpine landscape, & a dizzying array of cultural attractions, this picturesque piece of countryside is one of Japan`s best kept secrets. 9 – Wakeboard in Lake Kizakiko – Wakeboarding is not as difficult as you think & Kizakiko`s smooth waters is the perfect place to do it. 8 – Visit Miasa – Miasa is a charming little farming community about 20 minutes-drive from Hakuba. “Miasa” means “beautiful hemp” which is what they used to farm here. Nowadays it`s mostly soba & rice. Naturally, you`ll find some of the best soba restaurants in Japan here. But you should also check out Miasa Coffee – a charming straw-bale coffee house on beautiful grounds….a fantastic place for a walk. 7 – Tandem Paraglide – with a qualified instructor, sore amongst the majestic peaks of Hakuba. 6 -BBQ – whether you do it at the edge of the Matsukawa river, on the shores of Aokiko or on the deck of one of our chalets, this is what summer`s all about. We`ve got the bbqs & we`ll take you to the local butcher with cheap “inaka” prices. 5 – Take a Mountain Bike Clinic at Sweetriders – or if you already know what you`re doing, rent a bike & we`ll show you some fantastic trails. […]

Over 2 Months of Great Snow to Go! The Hakuba 2013 season is in full swing & as usual, we`ve had a fantastic Dec/Jan with powder a plenty & the odd bluebird day as well. We`d like to give a big thanks to all our wonderful guests for helping make this season the best yet at Morino Lodge! It is going by fast but thankfully we can count on over 2 more months of great snow to come. March & early April are filling up fast but we`ve still got some great options available along with some great deals. The Yen is Falling…. ….almost as fast as the snow. Factor this in with the BIG DICOUNTS we`re offering on last minute bookings & this may be the best times ever for a ski holiday in the Japanese Alps. Last Minute deals for Feb/March Morino Lodge is Hakuba`s premier lodge & the place where it all started. lol! & still has a few rooms available the last week of February. And we`re offering late March discount rates from Feb 22nd onwards; Twin/doubles @ 8000 yen/person/night Triples @ 7000yen/person/night Quads @ 6000yen/person/night All rooms have en suites & all prices include breakfast. Wadano Lodge offers unmatched value for en suite rooms & has availability from; March 9th onwards @ the super discount rate of 5000yen/person/night with breakfast The Alps View Chalet is arguably Hakuba`s nicest self-contained accommodation in a stunning location 100 meters from the Happo Gondola. And it`s currently still available; From Feb 22nd onwards @ the super discount rate of 60000yen/night. The Big Bear Chalets as always are extremely popular & are filling up quickly. But we`re keen to fill the last few gaps in March so have them on offer at the record low prices of; 36000yen/night for the […]

Last night was the Hakuba Premier of the second installment in Big Mountain Legend, Jeremy Jones` snowboard movie trilogy, Deeper, Further, Higher….and i gotta say, it was some inspiring stuff. In Further Jeremy & pals like Terje Haakonsen & Josh Dirksen push the limits of backcountry adventure, going to some really remote places with really gnarly lines. Camping out for weeks in the Wrangell Mountains in Alaska (an extreme environment where humans aren`t really meant to be) & the Atomfjella Mountains in Norway`s far North (they had clear views of the North Pole from some of their summits!) were 2 of the highlights for me…. …but the real highlight for me (& all the other Hakuba-ites gathered in the theater) was the first segment, where Jeremy & Forrest Shearer discover the magnitude of world-class terrain that is our backyard here in Hakuba. They spent nearly a month here camping, climbing & rapidly descending some of the finest lines on the planet. Indeed Jeremy himself gave Hakuba a heart-felt endorsement, proclaiming it amongst the best terrain he has ever ridden….and lets not forget, this guy has been absolutely shredding Alaska for the past 20 years. And this wasn` just lip-service as its what we have known since we first  came here 12 years ago. Very good terrain with very good snow! Anyhow, Further is well-worth checking out.It`s available on here on itunes. It was great to see all of Hakuba there last night & i think we`re all now eagerly anticipating the coming season. Be safe & pray for big snow!

After the cherry blossoms come out in early May it’s hard to think about snowboarding any more, especially as the powder is a long and distant memory. There’s still plenty of snow left on the high peaks though and we planned a mid May expedition to take advantage of the spring snow pack. From the valley I’ve often gazed up at the Hakuba three peaks and my eye is always drawn to Hakuba Yari. In particular the beautiful symmetrical East face cradled between steep cliff buttresses funneling down into the mother of all gullies in Hakuba – The Yari central gully. So it is, as we found ourselves snowshoeing up from Sarukura early on a Sunday morning. It was a stunning day and the Japanese backcountry enthusiasts were out in force. There was just enough snow to snowshoe straight from the car and full cover a hundred metres above the car park.

With all the new snow in Hakuba over the past 48 hours – not to mention the currently super unstable snow-pack – look for your bottomless turns & face-shots on the resorts, in the trees & in the safer Hakuba side-country early this week. Hopefully things will stabilize in time for the clear skies forecast later in week & some big hikes will be possible. In the mean time, here are a few more random pics from the back-country last week.  

The past week has been heavy on the hikes……lots of clear skies & limited snowfall have made it perfect for long leisurely hikes to any of Hakuba`s endless bc lines. Here are a few pics from my fancy new phone.  

A glorious and sunny afternoon was the perfect opportunity to explore the “Mori” (woods) surrounding Morino Lodge.  

Deep epic blower powder today but stick to well treed areas and/or ridge lines. The faceted melt crust is still there and still weak, now under over a metre of storm snow. Today a huge class 5 slide on the south side of Goryu buried a Japanese skier who sadly didn’t make it. The instability may linger for a while until the facets are crushed by a lot of snow on top.   Hakuba – Jan 28th 2012 from morinolodge on Vimeo.