The last few days have been simply amazing here in Norikura-Kogen. We had a little bit of a warm stretch until Tuesday and then it just started dumping again. In places over 1m in the ski resort. I went out for a little “Powder Shoot” with one of our instructors named Daniel from Finland and had a great time in the snow. Bluebird with lots of fresh powder always makes for some good photos. Here are a few of my favorites from yesterday.

Hey all you snowboard video fans. We just finished our “WHITE FUN” video trailer. You can check it out on our YouTube Channel or on our Facebook Page. We will be producing a longer film during this winter season and putting it out in the spring. We hope you will enjoy the film and get stoked about snowboarding.

Are you looking for an adventure this summer? Consider our ALTITUDE backpacking trip into the Northern Japanese Alps. We will spend 4 days and 3 nights trekking across beautiful trails discovering new heights and having tons of fun along the way! Check out our homepage for the ALTITUDE Backpacking Camp to learn more.

Camp Info

A. Junior/Senior High Camp (12+)
Dates: August 5-8 (Wed-Sat)
Price: ¥28,000

B. Young Adult/College Camp (18+)
Dates: August 13-19 (Thur-Sun)
Price: ¥32,000

We started our spring season last week.

We are having wilderness first aid training corse this week with the Japan MTB Guide Meeting. It’s so important to have this training for people in the adventure sports market. Our staff, Ymkn Seth and me (Michie) took this also. We hope to offer this corse next year also.

We  got a trampoline again last week. It’s been 2 years since we lost our last one. We heard lots of request from guest to have have a trampoline again. So here it is. It’s bit smaller than last one but still really good. The biggest request to our director Dan, was from Ymkn’s 3 years old girl. She said “Where is trampoline uncle Dan?”

We all looking forward to having you come and try our trampoline.

We love to serve our guest and we love our adventure!  Yet we  have another love and that is our passion for the local community.  As you know, we are actively involved in the local ski resort.  Northstar is volunteering 100’s of hours worth of labor to create the “best little park” in Japan but we also “cheer for the locals” in a “kusataikai” like the BIG AIR COMP.    Thanks for supporting our great local ski hill!

Though it may be turning March, it’s not spring just yet in Norikura. Although the plums are just blossoming down the mountain from Norikura Kogen, the ski hill is still up and running. The ski lifts will tentatively be open for one more month. Which means if you still haven’t pulled your skis or snowboard out of the closet yet this season – it’s about time! Hurry up and plan your end of winter trip to the mountain for some fun in the snow.

Rooms and Learn To Ride snowboard lessons from NORTHSTAR have limited availability, so please write or call us as soon as possible to make a reservation. NORTHSTAR’s end of season Thank You Camp could be a perfect opportunity to take your last run on the slopes. This camp special will only be available from March 28-29 and will include a FREE activity, one night of lodging, and two meals for ¥7800 per person. Please see our LTR page for more info on prices for lessons, our Events page for more upcoming activities and camps, or our Spring Backcountry page for the next season of fun here with NORTHSTAR outdoor adventures.

On Saturday night there was a night comp and we had 8 staff enter. It was pretty low key but fun to watch and there was some guys trying some crazy stuff off a pretty small jump. 1st place went to the skier who did the dead man air in the photos blow.

On Thursday here in Norikura at the snow park on the mountain, our park crew working alongside the mountain crew have continued construction of a nice kicker. We have been working to clean it up a bit and create a gap for some nice air time. When we’re finished, it should look pretty nice. Hope to see you around up mountain hitting the park. Enjoy yourself and have a safe ride.

We finally finished our renovation of the first floor toilet. It took most of our Autumn to work on some of our renovation projects. Our cool carpenter staff, Seth and B, worked on the projects. The new interior wall colors are mocha and white. We really like the contrast. It has a calming effect. We installed a new big mirror as well. Please check out our new toilet when you come.

We got a blessing of snow this afternoon!

After a day in the ski resort, friends and staff enjoyed the NORTHSTAR snow park while the snow was falling.

There will be powder tomorrow!!