Five outdoor sports program will take place along with the Banff Mountain Film Festival Weekend. NORTHSTAR is offering 2 of them following;

Trail Running

Trail Running is getting more popular in the recent years. We offer guided runs which go through the trails of Norikuras virgin forest. After stretching and a warm up run, we ride up with a bus to midway area of Mt. Norikura. The run will be mainly down hill. The guide will give you some tips about trail running at the rest points.

For Beginners

Group size: 10
Meeting Place: NORTHSTAR registration tent at Norikura Outdoor Theater (top part of Igaya Ski Resort)
Time: 9:00-11:30am
Fee: ¥3,000 (incl: insurance)
Age: 7th grade and up

For Experienced Runners 

Group size: 10
Meeting Place: NORTHSTAR registration tent at Norikura Outdoor Theater (top part of Igaya Ski Resort)
Time: 1:30-4:00pm
Fee: ¥3,000 (incl: insurance)
Age: 7th grade and up

 

 

MTB Tour

Riding in Norikura makes you feel like you are in Canada or somewhere other than Japan. We offer our regular guided tours for both beginners and experience riders. After about an hour long beginner lesson or skill check, we will guide you into the trails.

For Beginners

Group size: 10
Meeting Place: NORTHSTAR registration tent at Norikura Outdoor Theater (top part of Igaya Ski Resort)
Time: Morning 9:00AM-12:00PM
Afternoon 1:30PM-4:30PM
Fee: ¥4,500 (incl: guide fee, rental bike, rental helmet and insurance)
Age: 7th grade and up
Qualification: Needs to be able to ride with standing position

For Experienced Riders

Group size: 10
Meeting Place: NORTHSTAR registration tent at Norikura Outdoor Theater (top part of Igaya Ski Resort)
Time: Morning 9:00AM-12:00PM
Afternoon 1:30PM-4:30PM
Fee: ¥5,500 (incl: guide fee and insurance)
Age: 7th grade and up
Qualification: You need to have your own bike in safe working condition and which is able to ride off road trails. Please bring your own helmet and gloves.

Disclaimer
Guides will make the final decision about what trail to run/ride. Please understand that we will have your safety as a primary focus of the tour. We will take into consideration the skill ability of our guests, the weather, and the condition of the trail to make this evaluation. For the Experienced Group we will also make the final decision about the condition of your bike and if we feel it will be safe to ride.

 

Registration

Please tell us your name, address, age, phone number, the program you would like to join beforehand via phone or e-mail. Payment will be on the day of the event at the registration tent.

Banff Mountain Film Festival is coming to Norikura!

The 33rd annual world famous outdoor film festival, Banff Mountain Film Festival is coming to Norikura. Over 300 films with themes like “mountain”, “adventure”, “nature” and “enviroment” compete from more than 30 countries for first place and other prizes are elected from them. Over 190,000 people watched the films including the world tour. The event is getting bigger and becoming one of the favorites among people who love the outdoors.

That film festival is coming to Norikura.

Schedule: 18:00 (gate opens) 19:00 start on Saturday October 4th
Place: Norikura Outdoor Theater at Igaya Ski Resort

We are offering special package for the weekend; 

Banff Weekend Pacage
¥8,800 [1 night lodging with 2 meals + 1 movie ticket] 

 

Also we provide variety of activities that you can enjoy.

Saturday, October 4th
Trail Running (NORTHSTAR)
MTB tour (NORTHSTR)
Norikura Kogen Nature Guide Walk（ODSS: 058-248-4711）

Sunday, October 5th
Mt. Norikura, Kuraigahara Walking（Norikura-Kogen Visitor Center: 0263-93-2147）
Colored Leaves Walking （Norikura-Kogen Visitor Center: 0263-93-2147）

Please register at each activity operator.

NORTHSTAR would like to welcome our newest member to the team, Seth McAllister. He is originally from Oregon State in the U.S. but has been living in Japan for almost four years now. He is an avid Mt. Biker and Snowboarder so naturally he will work as a MTB guide in the summer and Snowboard instructor in the winter. We also have Seth to thank for our new home-page design and all the new marketing material. 

 

 

 

 

 

We asked Seth a few questions to help you get to know him better.

N★: How old were you when you started Mt. Biking?
Seth: I was in Junior High, but I had been riding BMX bikes for a long time before that. 

N★: What kind of bike are you riding now?
Seth: I just got a new Rocky Mountain Slayer and it is sick!

N★: What do you do when your not working?
Seth: I try to spend as much time with my family as I can, my son is growing up so fast and I don’t want to miss anything.

N★: What is your favorite Japanese food?
Seth: I really like “Oyakodon” its chicken with egg in a rice bowl. So good. 

N★: And one last random question. What kind of socks do you like?
Seth: I like DAKINE socks.

At NORTHSTAR we like to BBQ and if you like BBQ than you are in for a treat. We serve up a great mix of western and Japanese food. Its all served family style just like our other meals so you can have a chance to meet one of our foreign staff members or maybe another guest.