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Lately since Asahidake snow has arrived on top I have been wanting to take a drive to the bottom of the ropeway to get a look at the new snow, so this past weekend I asked my kids if they would like to go with me to check out the new snow, and they both agreed. We arrived at the bottom of the ropeway about 12:00 noon, but was disappointed to find no snow.

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I suggested to my two sons to walk up the Asahidake trail to find some snow, they both agreed so off we went. Before long we had walked for one hour. Now the decision was at hand, the beginning of the trail is really brushy and troublesome to walk through, so we could go back down one hour or we could continue to the top of the ropeway for another hour.

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The kids said they would like to continue up and ride the ropeway back down. I was starting to get a bit worried about the conditions, because both boys had started to complain of cold feet due to them being wet. I was ok because I wore rubber boots, which are not the greatest for mountain climbing.

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I made sure that the boys feet were not numb cold, but just uncomfortably cold. At the end my youngest son was complaining of an aching back because he was wearing a backpack. I asked my oldest son to carry it for him, and we made the last bit of the climb without any problems.

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I was so proud of my youngest son to make the climb, being he is only 6 years old, and a bit on the small side, he did it with not much problems at all. My oldest son, I feel could make the additional 2 hour hike to the peak next summer. The Asahidake snow is not that deep yet, and from other hikers using the trail the snow was packed down to easily walk on.

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A few people were attempting to ski, but it is much too early for that, but I applaud them for making the attempt, I myself can’t wait to get started on this years snowboarding season. We should be seeing our first snow in the Kamikawa basin over the next two weeks, although the weather has been very strange this year with tons of moisture. Maybe that means we are in for a lot of snow this year. I can only hope that is the case.

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The views were beautiful as always and the Asahidake snow that was present was an amazing site. The suns rays were coming through the clouds and created beautiful sights, as you can see from the photos. What we did was not the smartest thing in the world, but the weather held out and the temperatures were not cold at all.

If you are in the Asahikawa area and feel like a bit of hiking, go for it. The Asahidake trail is very simple in my opinion.