Four Hundred Days Til Re-entry

Merry Xmas 2006 in Aomori, Japan

This is hopefully my last Christmas away from home / family for some time to come. It has been some five years since I last did it but this time was my first completely on my own.

I was up at dawn and off into the hills after stuffing my face at the eat-all-you-can buffet breakfast at my hotel. First stop was Moya Hills, a skiing / boarding place. Boring as hell - only half of the lifts open and the life groomed out of the runs that were there.

The second stop was Mount Hakkoda which was the best place I have been in Japan. Pricey, but well worth it for the 5 or 7km long runs through the lollipop trees. The scenery was stunning and the clouds parted at all the right times for me to get the shots I wanted. The boarding was challenging and interesting. You couldn't get one of those damned grooming machines down the runs. Finally, I lost my sunglasses on the way down (I was being a bit too ambitious with my jumps) and actually had tem handed back to me with a Merry Christmas to boot. Now I know I love Alpine boarding.

I never did manage to find the onsen I wanted to go to. I did manage to find a good yakiniku shop. No turkey on the menu though, I am afraid. Here are some more photos:


Moya Hills - though I love boarding I hate what the resorts do to the views.


The top of Hakkoda - see what I mean about the trees?


Partyway down the hill on the forest course. The trees were not so heavily coated here.

Labels: Aomori, Hakkoda, Japan, snow, snowboarding

posted by Between daisies @ 09:05