Japan is an amazing, bizzarre country. When you see Japanese lining up to take pictures of the most regular thing ever, like a road sign, it seems, well, odd. It’s odd because it’s a simple road sign meant to indicate icy roads ahead. No big deal. Then, you drive in Japan.

As an American, an international driver’s license, valid in 196 countries, requires nothing more than a passport picture and $15. A small little booklet shows up in the mail. No instructions, no list of “do’s and don’ts”, not even a list of which country’s residents drive on the right hand side and which drive on the left. Imagine, concentrating on driving a rental car on the left hand side of the road, using your left hand to shift gears, trying to remember that the window wipers and turn signals are on the opposite sides, all the while trying to recognize road signs (if any at all) written in Kanji. You can’t even READ! But you can understand pictures. Pictures of the mascot of Niseko, the skiing potato.

Pictures of oversized fox creatures with extra long whiskers. I find myself stopping in the middle of the street to take pictures of perfectly normal [things], like a street sign. It seems odd to the local. I am officially a tourist.

Thank heavens skiing powder is a universal language. This is why I’ve traveled nearly 8000 miles by plane, train, bus, car, and foot to ski the deep magical powder of Japan, Niseko specifically. Hokkaido is known for copious amounts of light, fluffy goodness boasting a similar water content to the powder in Utah, 8-9%, not exactly the lowest WSE (water snow equivalent) out there but somehow skis amazing.

Incredibly cold air blows in from the plains of Siberia, sucks up moisture from the Sea of Japan, remains freeze dried as it wraps around various volcanoes and then dumps around 500“ of snowfall Mt. Annupuri, home to five ski areas. Annupuri, Niseko Village, Hirafu, and Hanazono are all under the umbrella of Niseko United and off to the side is Moiwa, the little family resort that rocks.

A stone’s throw away is Mt. Yotei, an 1898 meter volcano on which you can backcountry ski any aspect and even down the crater on top for extra points.

Then there is all the easily accessible snow cones of backcountry – Mostly dormant volcanoes, harvesting deep consistent powder with a view of the sea in the background and hot springs (called “onsens”) on the drive home. Mellow terrain with hero snow; anybody can feel like a rock star in Hokkaido with minimal effort. I’ve skied the deepest powder of my life in Japan, up to my chest, literally.

It’s a common thought that the terrain saves lives in the Niseko area. The average slope angle is around 30 degrees. No big deal. The average snowfall is close to 500” each season. Kind of a big deal. The average professional avalanche mitigation done is close to none. Big deal. Countless numbers of skiers and snowboarders travel out the backcountry gates of Niseko unfamiliar with the use of a beacon, shovel or probe. Ski patrol states visitors should travel at their own risk yet they take ridiculous measures to keep skiers out the days they decide the danger is high. Cultural differences of opinion on how to manage avalanche terrain are about as cohesive as a bag of magnets. If someone dies in avalanche terrain, in any manner, that area is closed indefinitely. The one daily avalanche bulletin states the weather, includes a sentence discussing the snowpack if you’re lucky, then goes on and on and on about how disrespectful it is to the local customs to duck ropes. When avalanches do occur there is no forum for discussion. It’s almost as if it’s embarrassing if a mistake is made and best kept secret, as if to save face. This is really challenging for the visiting backcountry traveler.

Is there a solution? Have things changed since I last visited in 2015? I’m not sure, however, I was fortunate to visit Kashmir, India this year and check out Gulmarg ski area. While the area is way less developed and sees hundreds less skier days a season it suffers from the same challenges. The terrain isn’t so forgiving though and the hospital much less appealing. The mountains don’t care how far away from home you are but it sure is fun to explore!

The post Guest Post: Skiing in Niseko, Japan appeared first on 14erskiers.com.

“There’s skiing in India?” This is the number one question I got when telling my friends and family of my upcoming adventure. YES! There IS skiing in India! When my friend, Leslie from A-Basin, asked me to join her on this epic bucket list item she was ready to check off I really hadn’t the slightest idea where the skiing actually was in Kashmir, India. Nor did I care. Skiing with rad women in a wildly foreign country? I’m in. As the months unfolded before departure it became apparent this was going to be the trip of a lifetime.

First off, all four of us absolutely love to ski so we had our priorities straight. All of us had been on Crested Butte Ski Patrol at one point or another so we had the experience. Krista Hildebrandt is still rocking the red cross in her 25th year, Robin, now lucky enough to shred the coveted Utah pow, showed me the ropes back in the day, and Leslie likely gave North Face tours before the NFL poma showed up. Most importantly, we knew how to have a good time no matter how the adventure unfolded.

From Crested Butte to Denver to Munich to New Dehli to Saringar to Gulmarg and bam, we are ski touring with monkeys.

While a storm was laying down a fresh coat of paint we anxiously waited until day three to access the steeper terrain. Gulmarg ski area has two phases of a gondola starting at 8727’ and ending at 13,057′ on a ridgeline littered with avalanche paths. The in-bounds, controlled area is quite small but the areas north and south are open to be explored, preferably by those with the gear and knowledge to do so. Snow safety director, Luke Smithwick, makes it very clear every Tuesday evening at his avy talk that those areas possess “wild snow” and it is unlikely patrol will come to save you if something goes wrong.

On our first bluebird day our guide took us on a mellow tour to the town of Drung where we interrupted a school day to hand out chocolate and let the kids mess around with our skis. They weren’t shy and they love chocolate but were kinda freaked out by Krista’s airbag.

Each day we pushed out a little farther building trust in our guides and the snowpack. The skiing was fantastic and the views stunning. Our tail guide was a Kashmiri local which was super helpful for negotiating our way through the Indian Army Camp and scoring us a couple forbidden beers. Touring super close to the Pakastani border had its own excitements. At one point when it may have been perceived that we were spies on skis a helicopter appeared over the horizon a couple times to check on us. I’ve seen helis in the mountains transporting skiers, filming, and out on a rescue mission, but never have I seen one ready to shoot if necessary. Don’t get me wrong, the ladies and I never felt unsafe, but the long standing fight to claim Kashmir as part of India, Pakistan, or China is far from settled.

As the week went on we continued to seek out the north facing powder and even snuck in a little corn skiing. I’m really grateful I could keep up on skis as my snowboard only came out once. The traverses to get back to the base area are long, longer, and longest. One can also drop off the backside to access Shark’s Fin and another sweet face protected from the sun and skin back up to the main ridge.

The skiing part of our trip ended with a night spent on a house boat in Sringar followed by checking out the floating vegetable market at sunrise the next morning. It was so amusing to watch the morning commerce.

Sadly we said goodbye to Robin and continued on with the non-skiing part of our adventure checking out the “golden triangle” with a little twist. The twist was a night spent in the Neemrama Palace complete with terraces, massive chamber doors, and tiny window structures designed so that the queen could always be watching what’s going on outside but no one could see her inside.

The remainder of our vacation was non-stop eye candy. Forts, palaces, shrines, mosques, monkeys, camels, dogs, goats, cows, elephants, street festivals, spice markets, fabrics galore, and of course, the Taj Mahal.

If you want to experience steep powder skiing combined with the fascinating philosophies of Muslim, Hindu, and Sikh cultures, I recommend a visit to Gulmarg. The welcoming locals have lots to share and future access to the Kashmiri Himalaya is questionable. So, check it out while you still can!

The post Guest Post: Skiing in India – Gulmarg appeared first on 14erskiers.com.