Welcome Back Winter Party.

Snow forecast for this week. Resorts planning to open this weekend. Do we need any other reason to have a party?

Our Welcome Back Winter Party will kick off Friday night at 8pm in the Alpine Cafe. For the first 2 hours beer, cocktails and bar snacks will be 100 yen. They'll also be a session on the mini-ramp and DJs playing until midnight.

Weather-willing, it'll be off to the snow in the morning. Either that or lazing around in bed....

Come join us!

Who needs snow...

When you have GRASS SKIS!

Video of (possible career-ending) test session to follow.

New Poster #2 - Ski/SB Lessons

The instructors are starting to drift back into town so lessons are good to go as soon as the resorts are open. The lesson poster has had an overhaul for this season aswell.

All levels are catered for in both our ski instruction and snowboard lessons in English. The instructors are great with kids and make sure that they develop a love for the snow. We can also provide instruction in telemark or cross country if you are looking to try something new for the winter.

For the first time, this season we have an adaptive instructor for anyone with special requirements and will hopefully be working with the adaptive programmes in the areas that we teach.

Park and pipe are always growing in popularity so if you want to learn the basics or perfect a new trick we have freestyle lessons available. There are some great parks scattered around these areas.

We've also been known to head off and teach in other resorts outside of Yuzawa and Minakami, so if are struggling to find English ski or snowboard instructions where you are headed, feel free to give us a shout and we will see what we can do. We've taken clients to Nozawa Onsen, Kijimadaira, Shiga Kogen and even further afield when our schedules allow.

New Poster #1

As we await the arrival of the snow, we're using the time to do a few updates. The tour poster is first out of the blocks.

We've been looking at some new courses for snowshoe, coming up with some ideas for some special trips and working on some delicious lunch options to make that trip out into the mountains even more memorable.
The backcountry guides have some new routes scouted and are looking at running more expeditions for the more advanced riders among you. First-timer or hardened powder pro, there's a trip ready for you.

Now we just need the snow...

How difficult can it be to buy a drink in a ski resort before the snow comes?

Very!

Scare bear

An interesting addition to the neighbourhood this year were the (very high tech) bear bells. Been plenty of bear action all over Japan this year and after one of our guys had a close encounter last summer better to be safe. Hopefully they'll all be off to sleep for the winter soon.



Temperature drop yesterday and a dusting of snow up high. A taste of things to come?

Changing of the Leaves

It's one of those great times of year when the scenery up here is just breathtaking. The photos don't do it justice, but surrounded by mountains which are covered in trees, even a trip out for lunch has an amazing backdrop. With the colours changing daily it is a great time of year to be here.

And knowing the snow isn't far away is another reason to get excited.

First Snow

So it's been a long, hot summer but thankfully we've had the river there when we need to cool off, and it's been a life-saver. The cooler weather recently has been a pleasant relief though the jackets and beanies have started coming out in the last few days. This morning we woke to the first dusting of the season.



The long range forecast is looking reasonably promising with December slightly colder than average with plenty of precipitation. So here's hoping that means an early start to the 2010-11 season. Fingers crossed.

Yamanashi Canyon Japan

YAMANASHI SEASON IS ON!

The Yamanashi canyoning trip is the biggest sliding course in Japan. If you are after BIG water, BIG slides and BIG fun then this one is for you! The guides at Canyons love this trip and there is often a heated discussion about who gets to go every time there is a trip. It`s a long day but its well worth the effort.

Above: The approach is along well established hiking trail which takes approx 90min.

Above: After arriving at the top the crew take a short rest before getting suited up!

Above: Looking down the first few warm up slides, always gets the crew excited.

Above: The fourth slide is about 10m into a deep pool

Above: One of the crew decides to hit to jump on the fourth slide for some extra fun.

Above: Looking up the canyon at the fourth and fifth slides. The fifth slide is not for the faint hearted. When sitting at the top you are looking down into a narrow shoot not much wider than your body!　With no possible way to see the landing spot in the pool at the bottom its quite intimidating for even the more experienced canyoner! If your into big thrills and even bigger spills then this slide is guaranteed to put a smile on your face.

Above: You can see the scale of this awsome waterfall when someone is sitting at the top.

20m + of pure thrills.

Above: Taking a break to refuel for some more slides

Above: One of smoothest slides on the trip, great for headfirst sliding superman style

Above: One of the bigger slides near the bottom of the course, short slide - big free fall.

Above: Close up of the same slide, hold your breath as your sure to go deep!

Above: The last slide of the day! A bit of a corkscrew slide but with a smooth landing

Above: The hike out takes around 30min and leads us straight back to the car for a cold drink and the drive home.

Although the trip requires no rope work in normal conditions its not to be mistaken for a easy day in the park. The water in the pools is often quite strong and large part of the day is spent in the water swimming, sliding, climbing around and jumping. The course is over 2.7kms long and has over 30 waterfalls in total, so be ready for a physical day of adventure.

(If your looking for more info on the Yamanashi tour or tour dates please visit the Canyons website at - http://www.canyons.jp/Canyoning_F.html )

Crystal Canyon 2010

After the heat of the past few weeks we decided it was time to head over to Niigata and check out one of our favorite canyons before the first tours start later this month.

(For more detail on tour times check out - http://www.canyons.jp/Canyoning_F.html)

The large blocks of snow that normally sit in the sides of the canyons had all melted and the water temp was a warm 17.5 degrees. perfect conditions for the Crystal course.

( above: views up the canyon as we hiked in on the hiking trail. The waterfall looks small from here.....)

(above: Sam showing his jumping style on one of the first jumping areas)

(above: Mike in one of the narrows of the upper section)

From the get in point the canyon is split into two section, upper and lower. The upper section can be visited by swimming and climbing up the canyon to the top waterfall where the canyon starts. The upper section contains some of the narrowest parts of the canyon along with some great jumps in crystal clear water. The lower section open out as you go down with larger waterfalls and incredible panoramic views down the valley as you near the end.

(Above: The group bridges (steming as the Americans say) up the top section where the water flow is strong to swim)

（Above: Dave heads down the 18m drop to check it out for the others to follow. This is a picture taken from above the waterfall in the first picture. It looks a bit bigger from on top!)

One of the bigger waterfalls in Crystal canyon is a 18m drop into a beautiful pool. Its normally a great jump but we always send someone down first to check for hidden nasties (logs etc).

After Dave checked the pool below and gave us the all clear the rest of the group followed by jumping. Although not a jump for all its a great way to find out if your the jumping type!





(Above: Mike launching off the chock stone at the top of the 18m jump)

(Above: Sam exiting the pool below the 18m jump)

(Above: The final 30m abseil of Crystal Canyon)




As most of the staff at canyons know now Sam isnt to shy about getting his gear off. As a result has started a tradition of getting a few butt shots at every new canyon he visits.

This is Sam giving a final salute goodbye to Crystal.

To see just how beautiful crystal canyon is check out this short video below.

Yamanashi Canyon

Last weekend saw the first crew of adventurers challenge the mighty Yamanashi Canyon.  Conditions were (nearly) perfect, with a blue sky day and flows at optimal level. (a little bit chilly in the water...). Check the video above for a glimpse of this awesome course. 

This was the first of the special full day canyoning tours. Every weekend a different full day canyoning course will be available from our selection of 12 courses. So you can pick a canyon that is suitable for your groups level.

Golden Week Rafting Video

Because sometimes words and pictures just don't do it justice.

What a (Golden) Week!

Golden Week is normally a great time to be in Minakami and out on the river but this year was even better than most. We've been blessed with temperatures more like July than May for the whole of the holiday period.

The river has been in good condition for a few weeks now but the higher temperatures have helped with the melt which have taken it up another notch. Momijikyo is the only Grade 4 section of river on the mainland and as a result is pretty well known. It was certainly living up to its reputation as a world class section this week.

Happy customers, high thrills, warm weather, bbqs and parties - all the things we love at Canyons. High water season will continue into June so plenty of time to get a taste for some of the best rafting in Japan.

High Water, High Thrills

It's Spring here which means high water season on the river and conditions are awesome right now.

We're sending two trips out every day from today and with Canyoning tours starting from 29th April, it's almost business as usual here.

It's lunchtime right now and I can smell BBQ - you've got to love Green Season.

Tenjin Park

The park at Tenjin is at its Spring best. A good range of features from beginner to advanced with 5 jumps, 7 different rails and boxes and all a quick lap from the middle chair.

It makes for good viewing as well, as all features are visible from the main lift. Of course, this means both your hits (and big) misses are laid out for all to admire (as we often were), but it's all part of the learning process.

Tenjin should go through to the end of Golden Week and the snow is staying in good condition up there at the moment so plenty more days in the park to come.

Momiji Course Check

Rafting season kicks off a week tomorrow and as the water levels have been rising recently everyone was really keen to have a pre-season run. This is mainly to check the conditions and to make sure that no unexpected debris has appeared over the winter. Still leaves plenty of time to mess about and have a bit of fun.

The river is at its best at this time of year with the snow melt flooding the river and making the rapids all the more exciting.

High water season goes into May (and sometimes early June if the conditions are right) so if you are planning a spring trip this is the very best time of year to be rafting.

Snowboard Level One Exam

The Snowboard Instructors of New Zealand Level One exam finished on Tuesday. We had 8 candidates up for it and all had a great time on the course. Matt Phare came down from Hokkaido to exam for the SBINZ and provide top class training.

Weather was a bit mixed with some really hot days (that called for ice cream breaks) as well as one day with 30cms of fresh snow.

There was lots to learn and improve but in the end everyone got through with a pass, so ice creams all round on Tuesday.

That was the final exam for the winter, and we owe a big thank you to the NZSIA for helping us get it organised. We finished up with 100% success rate so smile all around. Hopeful more exams and training opportunities next year.

Not your usual Friday afternoon

We spent the morning finishing off what was left of yesterday's fresh snow up at Tenjin. Some great runs down but some scary debris lying around.

Then this afternoon we went to put our time in helping prepare for the Yubiso Yuki Matsuri. Most of the hardwork was already done with giant snow sculptures of popular TV characters all over the place.

Recognizing our artistic talent we were kept well away from the good stuff and put to work smoothing out the surface of the little airplane. It's now the smoothest airplane snow sculpture there and sure to be the delight of everyone who visits. Another job well done.

Yeah - the snow is back.

It was snowing lightly this morning and has been coming down consistently since lunch time. A quick check up at Okutone found a decent layer of snow sitting on top of soft base that was pretty fun to ride.

Looks like winter again and set to continue for a bit longer.

Naked Man Festival

Much to Rei's disappointment, this turned out to be more of a "Scantily Clad Man Festival" but was still a great night out. Semi-naked men, partially covered in hot wax, jumping into an icy pond to purify themselves before fighting the crowds to have the honour of entering the inner sanctum of the temple. At least, that's what we thought was going on.

And a street full of festival food. Haven't seen the staff so happy for a long time, dazzled as they were with the choice of more than five things.

Staff trip to Nozawa Onsen

Busy Feb so, with that out of the way time to chill a bit. We headed over to Nozawa Onsen to hook up with Taka, one of the crew from last winter, who is working Patrol over there. An early start, a hop over the hill from Niigata to Nagano and beautiful blue skies (for the morning at least.)

A seriously fun resort and great to get out as a team and rip around. Some wicked transportation options over there if you like your cars.

Airboarding

The nice folk at Kappa Club were offering some airboard intro sessions today up at Tenjin. If you haven't seen them bombing around the local slopes, then think boogie boarding on snow. Visibility wasn't the best today but never ones to be deterred by less than perfect conditions and shunning the idea of cruising around the groomers, it was straight to the park...

Airboarding on boxes is exactly what it says on the packaging.

And jumps were fun too. Though landings may need more practice.

Well worth a trip out on these - a guaranteed good time.

Spring Snowshoe in Minakami

With the weather warming up around Japan and the sun showing itself more often, it is the perfect time to get out on a Minakami snowshoe tour and experience the amazing mountains of Japan.

Yesterday Igor and I took a group of 8 customers up to Ichinokura, the glacier course in Minakami.  We were both keen to check out one of the new GIANT slides that I had found.

The day started out with low cloud, which means no panoramic mountain views but still enjoyable, as we made our way up the very scenic Yubiso Valley.

 

We got in a few small 5-8m slides to practice for some of the giant slides that we would be tackling in the afternoon.

 

After a short snack at Machigasawa we cracked the whip and managed to make it to Ichinokura by midday.

 

 As we dug our snow table and set up for  lunch the clouds slowly started to lift. The group all worked together to serve up the gourmet lunch... katsu-curry.

Not a bad view for a lunch spot eh! The entire lunch time was silent; a mixture of everyone's hunger and awe from looking at the mountains above. (Japan's largest slab rock face)

After lunch it we had a small warm up walk to get closer to the mountain (but a safe distance from avalanches) before gearing up for the afternoon. The first slide of the afternoon was a beauty. 30m @ 30deg. (bit hard to tell from this photo). 

The second slide was another 30m with a couple of nice jumps along the way.

When we reached the valley floor the clouds cleared off all the mountains and we got awesome 360 deg. views of the peaks around us.  The return walk was breathtaking! We chucked in a few headfirst and backwards slides for good measure for those that were up for it and by the time we got back to the van, everyone was happy to sit down, relax and reflect on the amazing day in the mountains.