Time to leave

Last day in Furano … the 3 weeks have passed so quickly. We have been looked after by Neal and Ayshe from Fresh Powder Apartments who made us welcome in this wonderful place.

The skiing has been phenomenal …I skied 20 days and the body is starting to feel a bit shattered. It has been great to meet up with Stef, Nick, Stevie, Sue, Tony, Matt Townsend and friends while we have been here. Adam has spent time with us when he has not been working.

We will definitely return here for the foreseeable future. Looking forward to returning to a warmer climate and spending some time on the beach.

Skiing the groomers

We have had lots of fun skiing with Sue and Tony for the last week. Cold temps, plenty of powder and perfectly groomed piste. Not much blue sky but that is OK for us keen skiers. Adam is busy working at the moment and he pops in occasionally to see how the old people are going.

So cold

The Morrells have arrived and Adam drove us all to Kamui (a ski resort close to Asahikawa). The road trip was great but a brutal Siberian blizzard had hit Hokkaido and the temperature at the top was -35 with wind chill. The skiing was pretty good but we couldn’t stay out very long.

Had dinner at Rising Sun on Thursday night and Masaya on Saturday night and even Nick (an accomplished Aussie chef) was impressed.

We said goodbye to Stef, Stevie and Nick yesterday after a great day’s skiing where the temperature was a much more pleasant -16.

Furano flakes

Day off from skiing today. Our legs are pretty stuffed after 5 days of skiing. Stef, Nick and Stevie arrived on Monday and Adam drove us all into town for a delicious sushi train dinner. Adam had to work yesterday and the rest of us skied the whole mountain. We all had a blast playing in lots of fresh, light, dry powder. It’s Nick and Stevie’s first time in Furano and they are completely blown away by the quality of the snow here.

Back in Furano

Had a pretty good flight from Sydney … upgraded to premium economy with frequent flyer points. Neil and Ayshe at Fresh Powder Apartments have looked after us and we feel very much at home here. Went into town for our big grocery shop but it turned out to more of a big alcohol shop.

Skied with Adam on our first day and checked out all the usual spots such as the Prince Bakery for morning tea … the pastries are as good as we remember. The snow was up to the usual high standard – light and dry.

Went to the annual Furano Snow Festival last night. Local vendors had food stalls and there were 2 giant fires. The temperature was around -15 so we were pretty rugged up. The highlight was the fireworks.

It snowed constantly for the first 2 days we were here and it was great to see the sun and blue sky today.