Approaching Chisenupuri in Hokkaido Japan, the unmistakable smell of sulfur filled the air. No, nobody had pulled out an egg salad sandwich. What our noses were experiencing was the overbearing fumes of the local onsen (Japanese natural hot springs); a small price to pay for an amazing day of skiing in the sun, reunited with my globetrotting group of instructor friends.
A short drive on route 68 past Moiwa gets you to this vintage, single lift resort. A vestige of the Japanese ski boom, Chisenupuri has to be one of the quietest resorts in Hokkaido– quite the opposite of Niseko. The week previous to our trip had been pretty disappointingly devoid of snow fall. Needless to say, my expectations for fresh lines were nil. Skis and boards strapped on, we bee lined-it for the lift and rode blissfully in the warm sunshine, a rarity for January in Hokkaido. There were three signs that the day was going to be epic: the company, the empty parking lot and the absence of a lift line. Then came the kicker.
A quick visual scan of the resort revealed no visible tracks. None. It was as though we had stumbled upon a ghost resort that had come to life for the sole purpose of providing the perfect backdrop for our instructor powwow. We had struck gold, with each of us scoring new lines down the treed faces of Chisenupuri. Such was our excitement over the bluebird day that we charged down unknown lines rather quickly with complete abandon. Jumping, whooping, hollering, then… “Cliff, Cliff, CLIFF!”
I just caught my friend’s green jacket disappearing over a ledge, head first as he tried in vain to stop. Heart in throat, I called out, gingerly approaching the ledge to survey the damage. Laughter echoed back up the sheer, 15 foot drop, signalling that my friend had survived the drop. To our surprise, he sustained no injuries of any sort save maybe a bruised ego. Giddy, nervous giggles erupted all around as we released the built-up tension of the incident. This time, luck was on our side.
With a fair amount more caution, we spent the remainder of the day exploring the small mountain. Low hanging tree branches, rocks and snow drifts provided and endless playground. The surreal, hot-pool studded landscape made for a dramatic backdrop to a perfect ski trip. Elated, but tired from our day of frolicking, our group divided up by sex and headed to the onsens for some R&R.
For the shockingly low price of 3,100JPY (roughly 31$) per person, our group of gung-ho, powder lovin’ friends had the best day ever. At that price, most skiers and riders would be pretty excited just to have lift access, but this sweet deal also got us lunch and admittance to the smelly, mineral rich onsen– a bargain to end all bargains if you ask me! Sadly, Chisenupuri shut down lift operations for the 2013-14 season. Given the complete and utter lack of skier traffic that I experienced, I dare say that was a predictable fate. There is still plenty of good skiing to be had at the smelliest ski resort in Japan if you are willing to do a bit of touring: a bit more work, but well worth it.
Winter is coming,
K
Part of the Hokkaido series:
Best Day Ever
Night Skiing in Niseko
Nipple Deep in Niseko Powder