It may be May already and most of the resorts in Japan are closed, but that is no reason to hang it up if you're willing to hike a bit. This year we decided to make another trip to Yarigatake, this time with our boards. Weather was a bit iffy, there was a cold-front on Monday nite/Tuesday, but it looked manageable. It was our first time carrying that much weight so we weren't sure about the pace, plan was to stop at Yarisawa lodge (around 14km) if the going was slow, or go for the summit if our legs were feeling good for another 4-5 hours.

May 10, Day 1: Hike up to Yarigatake

Tuesday morning 6:43, monkee at the gate



Yoko 9:22
About 11 km in. From here we can either go to the Karasawa Valley or continue on the Yarisawa. Later we heard from a skier on the way back that it snowed 30cm the night before, and there was some pretty nice lines to be had there.



11:53
After passing Yarisawa Lodge, finally made it to old campsite and was able to switch in ski-mode.



12:50
Snow here was pretty variable, mushy with pockets of ice.



13:40
After slipping and falling about 10x decide to boot it up..



13:44
Looks close but about another 3 hours to go Blue skies, but severe cold-front weather, -7 C with wind blowing around 8 meters/second. The snow here was mostly ice. Crampons would've been nice...
More info here: http://www.mcci.or.jp/www/yarigatake/me050510.htm



16:23
Summit after 22km..



18:39
After dinner, hanging out for the last shot of the day..

Love the monkey at the gate, great pics

Continued: May 11, Day 2 and Descent

Wed morning 7:59
After an early breakfast most everyone else at the hut went on their way, but the snow was still pretty icy so had some time to kill. Perfect time to climb Hosaki, the actual peak of Yari. After scrambling up for about 30 minutes, reached the top at 3180 meters. Really incredible views all around.



10:12
Scoping out some possible lines with the lodge staff. Hiking up this neighboring peak opens up lots of options - there is a really nice line, steep and long taking you to Haimatsu, or you can traverse a bit and ride all the way past Karasawa. The face on this side also looks sweet, but there were several cracks already starting to appear mid-way. Or, you could ride the Hidasawa-route on the backside of Yarigatake, eventually reaching Shin-Hodaka.



10:14
In the end we decide on the most standard route, since it's our first time here. We would drop in just below the hut.



10:40 - 11:03
Snow was variable but fun. This is what we had dreamed about for all those years...
Total vert we rode was more or less 1000m






11:27
Time to catch our breath, pack up and hike out 16km or so. I think next time we will probably bring along some lighter boards, the splits are nice when you can skin up, but this time we spent most of the time carrying them on our backs. Also, it is probably best to make this trip right before GW - there is more snow and the lines are longer. Anyway, all in all we had a great time.

That looks like a lot of fun. What was the temperature like up there?

It got pretty damn cold after 2pm on the first day - I could feel my hands start to freeze near the summit.

The data/photos here give a better idea:
http://www.jmbsc.or.jp/yari/yari20050510.html
http://www.mcci.or.jp/www/yarigatake/me050510.htm

nice work join us next time, toque has an eye for finding good lines.

Definitely, I hear ya Fattwins. There's so many great mountains to explore in Honshu...

Good work! I suppose you had Yarisawa valley round ("piston" of Japan mountaineers' jargon). This route and Hidasawa valley route are famous ones from Yari Peak, which I have never been. Some call the route between Kamikochi and Tateyama, Japan Haute Route. It takes four days expedition (mid-April thru late-May). Did you try it?

Nice pictures
I wish I had been out there with you
It has been so cold up here this week. I had to get a second blanket out at night.

Did you get into the Karasawa at all?

While riding the overnight bus it was raining on the way up there, and was lightly snowing when we got the Kamikochi Terminal. The wind was also blowing pretty good even in the valley floor. Near the top it was blowing my wife around pretty good, I weigh a bit more so it wasn't as bad for me. It was reversed while skinning up, though, since she could walk up stuff that I would slip and fall on (the snow there was either slush or ice). At night I used 3 blankets between the futons, yeah it was pretty cold! Planned to spend a day at Karasawa on the way back, but we were just too shot, next time we will bring lighter boards for sure. If you have the chance this weekend it might be worth trying out Toque.

SnowConnection, nope we have not done the Japan Haute Route. Here's one page I found about it:
http://www.edico.jp/chronicle1/japan-haute-route.html
You can find more searching for "日本のオートルート"

I'm going to do Norikura this weekend. The weather isn't the tops anyways.

Thinking of getting in the Karasawa again next weekend if you are up to it??
I want to try and get my bike on the bus to make the 11k slog a hella lot easier.
If I can't get my bike on the bus I might park my car outside the big tunnel (Nagano side of Abo Pass) and ride in early early morning.

You're wife/girlfriend is almost pointing at a really cool looking one

I hiked this route last summer over 6 days. We tented the entire thing and so had big bags with food.
It would be a really cool winter traverse although might be a bit much camping and carrying everything

Talked to a guy who skied Karasawa while we were there, he said they closed the winter (snow-covered) route between Hontani-bashi bridge up to Karasawa, so now you have to go up the summer-route. Took him about 2 hours up.

I think this is the company running the shuttle buses up there:
http://www.alpico.co.jp/shuttle_center/info/
They also run taxis, maybe that's another option if the buses are a no-go.

If we make it up will PM you for sure.

forgot to add, here's the website of the big lodge there:
http://www.karasawa-hyutte.co.jp/

sometimes they update pics of the snow conditions there:
http://www.karasawa-hyutte.co.jp/newpage16.htm

There was massive avalanche debris above that bridge during the later part of GW
I imagine the river is starting to open up around where the bridge is. They take it out in the fall and replace it with boards. But in the spring it is a suspension brigde.

But as for the taxi I am both poor and cheap which is why I tent instead of staying at the huts. I'd rather ride my bike through the tunnel than pay for the taxi.
I don't think it would be a problem putting a bike under the city buses I usually take to get in there

That 3rd site has some good pics. I'll have to keep checking that one.

yeah those taxis aren't cheap, but if you can find some people to share the ride, it might work out to be the same as the bus...

This was your first time snowboarding in that area Montoya?

yep, 3rd time up to Yari, 1st time boarding

you know, glissading is ok



but being able to ride it is so much more fun...