Niseko 2011

After 13 hours on our United Airlines flight, and the softest landing ever experienced, we have arrived in San Francisco. Most of us managed to get a few hours sleep on the plane, although this depended on which Joeys boys you were sitting near. The usual aircraft food didn’t do a lot to help its reputation but hit the spot a few times during the flight.

So far things have run very smoothly and we are just a little ahead of time. As I type we are on our charter bus driving over the Bay Bridge (so I am told by our navigator Sam Walker). As we look out to the left we can see Alcatraz (which we will visit later in the trip) and the harbour is just massive.

Now, I know that in the USA they drive on the wrong side of the road, however, as we drive across this bridge I now realize that they also drive on top of each other – I was confused about where cars going in the opposite direction were until I was told they were above us!

I have just heard one of the boys behind me comment, while looking at a new bridge construction, “Gee these Americans love bridges!”

It is a beautiful day here in San Francisco – about 10 degrees, clear sky with a little fog – not unlike our own winter.

So, we have this 4 hour bus trip and will arrive at Lake Tahoe at about 5:30pm. Hopefully a lunch stop is not far away and wherever we do stop … watch out!

Photo 1: Louis Collins (Year 9), James Ramm (Year 9) and Ben Williams (Year 9) show an incredible ability to maintain their energy for the whole plane trip!

Photo 2: A quick shot taken from the Bay Bridge

Written by Mr Andrew Dreitt-Smith

Today, unfortunately, was our last day skiing in Japan. It has been without doubt a wonderful experience for all involved having the opportunity to enjoy the variety of terrains across the mountain and culture of the Japanese people. The boys have been having a great time both on and off the ski fields as every time you walk out of the lodge you are immediately taken back by the environment that surrounds you and how different to that of home with mounds of snow everywhere and the vibrant ski village that Nesiko is.

After an understandably slow rising for breakfast as sore bones rested it was pleasing to see the ski room emptied by 9:30 with everyone out to make the most of the ski fields – it was clear that the boys were wasting no time today. Fresh snow covered the tracks of previous days offering a newness that excites the interest of all finding new areas to ski. I think the area that impressed me most today was a run the boys recommended to staff, Strawberry Fields. The run offered deep snow through the trees down steep terrain, as picturesque as the landscape was it did manage to bring all staff unstuck as the trap of our assailants unraveled, myself sliding helplessly on my back for a number of metres whilst reflecting on the boy’s comments, “its awesome sir”.  Thankfully the day concluded injury free for students and staff and returning of equipment undamaged.

Today we also celebrated the birthdays of Tim Keighley (Year 12) who turned 18 and Tom Mencinsky (Year 10) who turned 15 with cake in the dining area bringing the group together in celebration, what a wonderful place to remember for years to come where you were on your birthday. The boys then enjoyed the opportunity to eat out in the village, savoring the local eateries of Japanese, Tepinyaki, and local favorite the Nesiko Pizza next door satisfying those late evening hunger attacks.

And so the skiing has come to an end. It really was quite incredible skiing the slopes and powder we did and the boys certainly made the most of it today.

Photo 1: Brendan Brosnan (Year 10) gets some air on his final day of skiing.

Photo 2: Tim Keighley (Year 12) and Tom Mencinsky (Year 10) prepare to cut their birthday cake.

Photo 3: Will O’Connell (Year 8), Daniel Calvetti (Year 9) and Dom Maurici (Year 8) enjoy their last crape before leaving Niseko.

It has been some time since we have shown you some video footage of what the boys have been up to in Niseko. It is certainly not through lack of activity! I wish I could tell you what days the footage is all from in this video but I have lost track. So just sit back and enjoy!

Over the last 5 days or so I have used some pretty strong adjectives to describe what we are experiencing here in Niseko. Words such as superb, spectacular, awesome, fantastic, incredible (and the list goes on) have probably been over-used. I was told today by one astute boy that I always used the word awesome. My only reply was “How else do you describe this?”

Tonight as I sit here reflecting on the day the we’ve had, I simply cannot find the words to describe the day! As they say, a picture says a thousand words – well, check out the pictures from today in the gallery at the top of this page and you will know what I mean. Each of these photos were taken by either the boys or staff … I think we could sell some of them!

As for the day in detail, it started off pretty overcast and as a result there were a few slow starters this morning. Having said that, by about 10am everyone was out on the snow. It was somewhat of a surprise as the day cleared into the most amazing day of skiing and boarding. Many of us were lucky to be shown the secret ins and outs of the mountain by Joeys parents and Niseko regulars Max and Tanja Walker. This tour of the mountain literally spanned from one side of the terrain to the other. You couldn’t buy a tour like that and those on it greatly appreciated the time and patience that they showed as we traversed ridges, fought through gullies and floated through powder.

I feel a bit silly as I have mentioned powder a few times … today was nothing that I have ever seen or skied before. You hear people talk about thigh high powder and think to yourself that they are exaggerating to an extent … not if they have skied in Niseko!

Others of our group ventured into the depths of the mountain creating their own jumps. I am not entirely sure what the lift attendants thought as the boys carried a large shovel up the lifts! For these boys the powder provided the perfect soft landing for their experimenting.

Whether it be on the slopes or jumps, I think we all came a little unstuck today at some stage as everyone pushed themselves beyond what they had skied or boarded before – thanks to the powder these slips were cushioned very nicely.

Talking casually to Lee MacMaster, Andrew Drewitt-Smith and Mark Conlon, all of who have skied all over the world, each of them were convinced that the snow and conditions today were the best that they had ever experienced anywhere! That is a pretty big call and I know that many of the boys who have skied in varied places around the world all agreed too.

Dinner was once again a feast of Japanese cuisine and it was accompanied by enthusiastic chat about the days happenings. Whether it be the powder, the jumps, the off-course terrain, the beautiful view of the volcano Mount Yotei or the variety of people who the boys met – most notably when running into them and then feeling the need to assist them off the ground, to the lift, up the lift and down a few runs!

As we head into the final few days of the trip, it has been so pleasing to see the boys mix across year groups and get along so well. Let’s not forget that we have every year group at Joeys in 2011 represented this week, including the new Year 7 group. The boys should be commended on the impressive manner at which they have accepted each boy on the trip and not only got along but appear to genuinely enjoy each other’s company. In most cases, the boys from different year groups did not know the boys in other groups. This is certainly not the case now and we are confident that the boys will take this with them back to Joeys.

With two days to go the boys seem absolutely dedicated to making the most of the time left. Tonight as we viewed some of the video footage from the day it was great to hear the boys excited about what they were going to do tomorrow. I suspect that in some cases their imaginations may outpace their abilities … but then again, some of the skiing and boarding I have seen from the boys this week leads me to think that they really could achieve all that they are attempting … only time will tell!

Photo 1: An exquisite view of Mt Yotei from the intersection of Grand Hirafu and Niseko Village.

Photo 2: Nick Keighley (Year 10) getting just a little air!

Photo 3: Daniel Calvetti (Year 9) has an unplanned meeting with a tree.

Photo 4: Ben Pedley (Year 11) celebrates conquering the mountain.

Photo 5: Tim Keighley (Year 12) shows his skills on the jumps.

One of the things that has been a little difficult to get used to here in Niseko has been the unpredictability of the weather. One minute it can be overcast and blizzardy and then ten minutes later the sun can break through to create a beautiful patch of blue sky. It is about this point that you decide to leave the hot chocolate and head onto the slopes. Of course, by the time your skis are back on you could easily find yourself in a white-out. This was the story of today. And you know what … that’s what makes this place fantastic. You don’t travel to Japan to get perfect blues skies all day but rather for some harsher conditions and incredible snow … and that is what we are getting.

The lift pass we have covers four parts of the mountain and previously the boys had stuck pretty close to home.  Today, however, saw most of the boys head to Niseko Village which is a third section of the mountain. If you have seen photos of Niseko you may well have seen the Hilton Hotel at the base of the mountain. This is where we ventured to today. While I would like to think that the reason for heading to this part of the mountain was simply because the boys wanted some variety, I suspect that the 750 yen (A$9) all you can eat buffet at the Hilton may also have been a contributing factor. I don’t think that the Hilton knew what hit them!

Today was what we referred to as the ‘hump’ day. That is, we have had 3 days of skiing before today and have three after today. It was obvious today that the boys were starting to feel the fatigue that naturally comes with skiing flat out for four days straight. As a result none of the boys headed out for night skiing but rather chose the more relaxing option of a dinner in the village. The boys headed to their own choice of restaurant with many finding themselves at the local Teppanyaki.

After dinner some of the boys headed down the road for a swim, however many of them enjoyed a quiet night at the lodge. Although the name checks are important, it was quite nice to have a few boys miss the evening name check for a good reason … when we chased them up, they were found sound asleep in their rooms. A sure sign that they are making the most of their time here.

Photo 1: Clear one moment…

Photo 2: Snowed in the next.

Photo 3: The Hilton Hotel at the bottom of Niseko Village Resort – the home of the cheap but high quality all you can eat – boys heaven.

Well, we were not too sure whether or not the sun was ever seen here in Niseko. Today we well and truly found out that it does. Despite our weather man (Mr Conlon) giving us all the brief at breakfast that there would be no sunshine, we were treated to some spectacular views all over the mountain.

The boys made the most of the sunshine by spending the day out on the slopes and it was fantastic to see most of them come in for the 12 noon check off and then head straight back out onto the mountain… a sure sign that they are loving the experience!

There has not been a day on the snow so far that has not been enjoyable, however, today was certainly something special. From the top lift on the mountain you could literally see all the way to the bottom and what a magnificent sight it was! In talking with the boys this evening, there was not one boy who didn’t appreciate the awesome opportunity that they had.

This evening we were treated to another fantastic Japanese meal at our lodge. It is just so authentic and as you sit at the table with five or six different dishes in front of you, you realise that there is no problems with quantity!

When it comes to value for money, the boys are certainly getting it because yet again, there was a large number of boys who headed out after dinner for night skiing. Tonight it was just beautiful. We did have a short white out while on the slopes, however, that tough ten minutes was worth every second for the other two hours of absolute bliss!

It has been said that you can visit Niseko for a full month and never see the sun. Today we saw it and it made for yet another superb day here in Japan. Check out the photo galleries by clicking on the links in the menu at the top of the page.

Photo 1: Tim Keighley (Year 12) and Nick Keighley (Year 11) make the most of the stunning conditions.

Photo 2: Andrew Mulligan (Year 10) and Paul Fortuin (Year 10) check out the amazing view of Grand Hirafu and the surrounding villages.

Photo 3: Dom Maurici (Year 8), Matt Walker (Year 8), Will O’Connell (Year 8), Louis Collins (Year 8) and Daniel Calvetti (Year 9) prepare for a spectacular day in the sunshine.

One of the most common comments I have heard both the boys and staff say today is “it just never stops snowing”. It’s a fair question too because since getting off the plane in Sapporo it has snowed every minute that we have been here … but no one is complaining!

Check out the video first to get a bit of a feel for what’s been going on here in Japan!

Click here to view the video

In yesterday’s write up I mentioned that the boys had been given guidelines for low visibility skiing. Well, today they needed this as the weather certainly closed in many times during the day. To put it bluntly, it was cold (steady -6 degrees), it was windy (blowing a gale and creating a wind-chill factor of -15 degrees) and it was awesome!

As we headed up the lifts early in the day the sun was doing its best to peek through the clouds and even some blue sky was spotted. It was short lived however and several times throughout the day we were hit with high blizzardy winds and very low visibility. The blue sky you see in the video was the first and last for the day!

Despite these tough conditions the boys stayed out on the mountain for the full day and over half of them headed back onto the slopes for night skiing as well. Seeing this was a true indication that the boys here are just loving the experience and making the most of every minute!

Powder was mentioned briefly yesterday … that was nothing compared to what we had today. In most ski resorts you dream of that first morning run with fresh powder … not here … because by the time you get back up to the top after skiing a run there is already a new layer of fresh snow! It is hard to explain until you are in it but it was just amazing!

This evening the boys headed out for their choice of dinner. The area surrounding our lodge as plenty of options available and the boys made the most of the diversity of these. Some headed into traditional Japanese establishments while others had … well … pizza!

There are many cultural experiences to be had here in Japan and we might give some more of these as the week goes on … but one that some of the boys made the most of tonight was a traditional Japanese Onsen. They weren’t super keen to give too many of the details except for saying that it was certainly an “experience”!

It was a tough day to get photos and video … if you pulled your hand out of your glove for more than ten seconds you were likely not to feel it again for several hours! Hopefully tomorrow we may get a slight break in the conditions in order to get some good shots of the boys in action. Although we don’t want too much of a break as after all – snow is why we are here!

Photo 1: A photo that gives some picture of the conditions today.

Photo 2: Andrew Mulligan (Year 10) checking out the snow depth.