07 Dec - velvety

Not the most thrilling photo, and not really a big patch of terrain either. But in case you are interested, Hakuba's only true boulder line needs just a little more snow. Today I was surprised by the velvety quality of snow on shaded aspects which are low enough not to have seen any really wind recently. I'd call it shallow velvet powder over a settled base of soft snow. All this below treeline, despite the warmer weather. Shade is worth a lot in Hakuba once the sun comes out. Looking at the recent data, well shaded low altitude snow deserves to be in ok condition - temperatures at lower TL have remained below zero for a week now (the January blessing, not to be taken for granted). So much terrain, so little free time. Today I saw three new things of interest, and built on some existing terrain knowledge. It is always beneficial in clear weather to go to places that you only ever visit when it is stormy.