This is where I want to retire to.
If you are looking for something a little more relaxing to do in Hakuba then a snowshoe tour could be the perfect choice. It is a great way to explore the area from a different perspective. Photo opportunities arise over every crest. The sun shined through the trees as we stumbled upon this beautiful snow hut. With fantastic views of the mountains in the background this little place is everybody’s dream holiday shack.
The Finished Product!
Making our Okonomiyaki
Okonomiyaki has been a Japanese favourite for decades. The name translates as:
“yaki” = “grilled” or “cooked”.
“okonomi” = “what you like”, or “what you want”.
Basically it’s a savoury pancake containing a variety of ingredients, as you like them… it literally translates to “what you like, grilled”, which means there is no one way to make Okonomiyaki – it’s up to the chef and in many cases, the chef is you! We were lucky enough to be invited over to our neighbour’s house in Hakuba to experience making our very own Okonomiyaki.
There are two main styles of Okonomiyaki in Japan:
1. The Kansai or Osaka style – where all ingredients are mixed together then grilled.
2. The Hiroshima style – where the pancake is grilled first then ingredients are layered on top. This is the style we made.
Our Okonomiyaki consisted of the batter (made mostly with cabbage, water, egg) layered with fish, pork, red ginger, soy sauce, mayonnaise, dried fish flakes & seaweed.
The hardest part is flipping the pancake without destroying it… it was delicious and incredibly satisfying – I recommend trying it if you see it on the menu!
Chris, our barman at the White Horse Hotel, cruises through the untouched powder in Cortina’s backcountry… Enjoy!
Discover Japan like you had never seen it. Combine action packed sequences with backstage access, Japanese powder with big lines, waiting games with bullet speed riding, building/sleeping in a snowcave with riding at sunrise, and you have the recipe of this The North Face Expedition with Lucas Debari as a guest rider and the regular TimeLine crew Xavier de le Rue, Tero Repo and Guido Perrini…
Got some time to kill at Narita Airport, Tokyo? For that one last taste of the amazing cuisine Japan has to offer before you fly home, rest assured – there’s actually some good food at Narita Airport. “Good food at an airport?” I hear you ask… That’s right! Look out for this take-away sushi bar at Terminal 1 at Narita and enjoy your last authentic Japanese meal!
No…not me – I’ll leave that up to experts like Tony 😉 Today I did spot some experts off the side of Happo – see if you can spot them! I managed to get the photo just as one started down one of these incredible chutes.
So if you’re like me and have been wondering what the difference is between all this back/slack country talk… here’s a quick summary:
Of course we don’t necessarily condone out-of-bounds behaviour, but if you’re serious enough to try it, I doubt you’re much of a rule-follower.
Obviously there’s avanlanche risk out there (as there is on any big mountain) so the right knowledge & equipment is essential. Have a chat with the guys at White Horse Hotel for tips on how to enter the wonderful world of backcountry.
Perfect Corduroy at Hakuba47
So it’s not always knee-deep powder here in Hakuba – but it usually is.
A gorgeous bluebird day today with some nice freshly groomed snow… and what an incredible photo taken under the Hakuba47 Gondola!
A bit of a top-up due tomorrow with some more forecast over the weekend.
What Truck?
It has been absolutely dumping for about 3 or 4 days now in Hakuba, Japan – I have never seen anything like it, it is absolutely beautiful… and quite funny at times when you see sights like this! (Perhaps not so funny for the owner of the truck!)
The skiing is phenomenal at the moment. On-piste is more like off-piste with a foot or more of fresh powder on the groomers. Then you can just imagine what off-piste is like!
The guests and staff at the White Horse Hotel have been gathering in the bar at 5 each evening with huge smiles on their faces sharing tales of face-shots, dig-outs and complete & utter joy in this incredible powder!
Another great Friday night BBQ at the White Horse Hotel in Echoland last night. The bar was packed with tired limbs, lots of great steak and plenty of conversation after a long day on the mountain!
After spending the past week looking around town for the biggest icicles in Echoland, little did I know that they were right above my head the entire time… literally. The White Horse has, by far & away, the biggest and best icicles around. They are bound to become the next tourist attraction in Hakuba! Join us for BBQ night next Friday or swing by for a drink in the bar & take a look!
Another brilliant day up at Happo today. Out the door bright & early to get one of the first gondolas up the mountain, then straight up the Alpen Quad on first lifts… a great start to the day. At the top of the Alpen Quad, we see movement over at the Grat Quad (the highest chair at Happo). Tony hot-foots it over to check it out, but they’re not quite ready. We entertain ourselves under the Alpen Quad for a run or two and – perfect timing – Grat Quad opens just as we pull up.
Tony’s so excited, playing it cool on the outside, but on the inside I can see him jumping up and down like a little kid. The view up there is breathtaking – even when it was mostly cloud.
I hear the shouts of joy as the boys on their boards fly off through the untouched powder to the left. I stay right loving the fresh corduroy under my skis topped with just enough powder to make it even sweeter.
What an awesome day. With more snow due on the weekend – you just gotta get up here and join us!
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