January 21st saw the first Herbie’s Rail Jam of 2012 held outside Niseko’s no. 1 apres ski venue, Herbie’s Umbrella Bar. A large crowd gathered, beers and mulled wine in hand, to watch skiers and snowboarders fail or nail the rail time after time. Sparks were flying! Check out the highlights from 360niseko here:

The next Herbie’s Rail Jam is tomorrow, Monday 30 January 2012, and will start at 5pm. Everything is in place to suggest that tomorrow’s event will be bigger and better than the last one! Herbies is located in Niseko Hirafu across from the Alpen Hotel and behind The Welcome Center.

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Today is Australia Day. Here in Niseko we celebrated by smashing through deep, fresh powder. And there was a lot of it; over 70cm has fallen over the last couple of days. Not sure if playing in the snow is a traditional way to celebrate Australia Day but it worked out pretty well for us! Take a look at some of the action here:

Filmed 26th January 2012 in Higashiyama, Niseko

Hakuba has been getting some awesome snowfalls lately. Check out this video from the guys at Hakuba Snow Sports School and let them welcome you to 99cm of fresh overnight! Then you’ll have a better idea of just how good it is in Japan right now.

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Report for 11th January 2012: It has snowed a lot. You should be out there.

Filmed 11th January 2012 in Higashiyama, Niseko

Check out this awesome film made by friends of ours to document the first few weeks of the 2011/12 season here in Niseko. Non-stop snow throughout December made it one of the best on record. Here’s the proof!

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Another 50cm overnight to take us past 5.5m for the season gave us the perfect present for Christmas Day. It hasn’t stopped snowing all day so the festivities look set to continue all week long! Wherever you are, Merry Christmas to you and have an awesome day with your family and friends!

Filmed on 25th December 2011 at Niseko Village, Niseko. Glen Claydon Photography getting the (face) shots.

17 consecutive days of heavy snowfall. 4.5m so far at village level. Today we hit the Higashiyama area of Niseko. Wow. This is what it was like.

Filmed on 20th December 2011 at Niseko Village, Niseko.

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“Japan was one of the most amazing ski trips I’ve been on, perhaps the best … We arrived to find scratchy conditions, but the next morning we awoke to about a foot of new snow and it didn’t stop for four days.”

This is a fantastic film featuring Jen Hudak and Julian Carr.

“The trip definitely was magical, and Japan has a special place in my heart,”

Read the full story and check out the awesome photos on the ESPN website.

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Another fantastic early-season morning in Niseko so we filmed a few shots to give you an idea how much snow has fallen already this year. 2011/12 has already been impressive and looks like getting even better. If you haven’t already arranged your Japan ski holiday, now is the time to Book!

Big thanks to the crew from 360niseko, The Barn and Rhythm – great way to start the day. Lots more to follow…

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It’s been a great week for snow in Japan and many resorts in the northern half of the country are now open and have lifts turning. We were out riding in Niseko today and, after a metre of fresh over the last 48 hours, the snow was fresh & deep and everyone had a big smile on their faces. We’ll be bringing you videos and snow reports with more frequency as the season progresses to make sure you’re kept fully up to date with how much snow is falling here in Snow Country.

In the meantime, we’d recommend watching this trailer for the upcoming Japanese snowboard film “S”Trippers & Powder Junkies to get you in the mood for winter. Featuring a host of talented and well known Japanese riders, everyone looks like they’re having a great time smashing park and powder all across the world and, of course, back in Japan. Be safe and have fun :D

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