This was one of the best trips I've ever been on - definitely the best ski trip I've taken. I heard a lot of the same comments from the other guys. It was a lot of fun keeping up the blog and letting everyone in a little on what we were up to. Hope you enjoyed. I went back and added some more video and photo posts if you're interested. I'd start from the beginning. See you all later.
On the main boulevard. Traffic isn't that bad in Tokyo since the public transportation system is so well laid out.
Here's John doing his best Robbie K. impersonation during the hour he wasn't asleep. It does kind of look like he's laying down though, doesn't it?
These private karaoke rooms are a lot of fun. Here's Matt singing his favorite Bon Jovi tune in the Purple Room. We thought we were going to be at this place for only an hour but we ended up staying another four. John slept for two of them.
Matt-E boy struts his stuff on the two banger. Best lift of the day. Mt. Yotei, the Volcanic Mountain in the background.No map, no signs, no beacons, no probes, no shovels, no water, no preperation, but lots of love = fun times near ridgemont high.
D hasn't stayed up much longer than Millhouse. Here he is at 6:31 just past Millhouse's bedy-by-time.
The jetlag has been relatively mild on this trip but Millhouse still hasn't stayed awake past 6:30. Here's a picture of the room he has been assigned. He lost his luggage on the flight out so he has been without his Hannah Montana pj's and binky.
Here's a picture of Matt before he completely lost it. We did 2 runs all day but that included about 43 traverses and 74 hikes. Matt had enough of that business. If you're not privy to recreational snow activities, traverses are a snowboarder's worst nightmare. The rare Japanese panda bear we came across paid a hefty price at the hand of the Hock. Wait, is that a Japanese or Chinese panda? Whatever, man! It's dead anyway.
Which way do we go. One wrong left turn and we were a little farther from the lifts than we hoped. Luckily Matt-E boy found a guide and got some invaluable directions. Now its only a 2 hour slodge back to the resort....no big deal.
The top of the world with everyone else. Careful though too far left and the hike out could be longer than necessaryGetting closer to the top of the world on the single banger. Todd and I have now experienced it all......but after getting back to the condo we have some new goals in mind.
No room on the couch for Millhouse. His catlike agility couldn't save his watchband though.
Not quite the quality post you would get from our tag along pro, but a good one none the less.
Taken at our favorite noodle shack a few hundred yards up the hill from our condo.
If the menus weren't readable because of the language barrier, at least we could visualize what we were about to order with the help of these plastic dishes. The food was great. We ate at a noodle shack on the mountain at least once a day.
I couldn't have asked for a better group of guys to do this trip with. Everybody has been so easy going and laid back. That is, except for Todd. We switched his Folgers Classic Blend with decaf and he went off all day like a possessed maniac. I've marked this experiment up as a failure and will not pursue further results with Group B.
We blindly chose our accomodations on the interwebs last September but things seemed to have worked out well. The walk to the gondola is less than 5 minutes and it's just a little longer to the local 7-Eleven where we have just about everything we need for sustanance and more. I think I'm going to move here. Here we are arriving at our condo after a long day of skiing.
So far this beard has paid off for me. Despite its functionality, I'm actually looking forward to shaving for once. Stats for the day: 22,000 vertical feet, 11 runs, countless face shots, and 0 bumps. Things are going well for this group.
Those Banquets went right through us. Snows looking good though, eh!? It hasn't stopped snowing since we've been here.
Todd was kind enough to pack a few Banquets in his ski bag for the road. Our driver didn't seem to mind the rowdiness.
This diesel Toyota mini-bus was 4-wheel drive and had plenty of room for all of our gear. It was a good thing because the drive up was through some windy narrow roads covered in unplowed snow with more snow piling on. Everyone was driving on the wrong side of the road too, by the way.
They arrived at the gate for the Narita-Sapporo flight with 1 minute to spare. Plenty of time to shotgun a Sapporo before boarding our flight.
Mike M. (a.k.a. Millhouse) - This will be Mike's 2nd trip out of the United States. Hopefully the natives will appreciate his silly American humor more than the Germans did at Oktoberfest.
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