Akita Hachimantai Ski Area

Akita Hachimantai Ski Area sits on the northwestern flank of Mount Hachimantai, on the Akita Prefecture side. Akita Hachimantai is one of those little ski areas that is great if you have an adventurous spirit and well-honed backcountry skills, and want to travel on a path less trodden in an onsen kingdom. 

Pros and Cons of Akita Hachimantai

Pros 

• Akita Hachimantai Ski Resort typically gets large volumes of snow and the elevation is high.
• It has easy access trees that are mellow and good if you’re acquainting yourself with tree skiing.
• During winter the visitor numbers are minimal and fresh tracks abound.
• The area is filled with lots of geothermal features which are pretty cool (even though they’re hot!) and there are various onsen facilities.
• It’s a gateway to hike up Mt Hachimantai to see the juhyo or drop a line.

Cons

• It’s a tiny ski area with only 220 metres of vertical and one slow double chair lift.

Pro or Con Depending On Your Perspective

• The in-bounds terrain and trees close to the piste are somewhat mellow.
• Akita Hachimantai is generally only open on weekends and holidays, unless you book it as a private ski area.
• It’s remote and takes effort to get there, which is why it’s not heavily trafficked.
• It’s reasonably inexpensive although you get very little for your yen.

Akita Hachimantai Ski and Snowboard Terrain

Like various other Akita ski resorts, Akita Hachimantai is tiny and has one pair lift that runs from 980 to 1,200 metres of elevation. It services two piste runs. The Bunamori slope is ideal for confident beginners to intermediates, whilst the Todomatsu slope is for intermediate riders and sometimes competitions are held on this slope. Both runs flatten out towards the base. Between the two piste is a small bank of mellow off-piste trees.

Sidecountry

The sidecountry (aka lift-accessed backcountry) close to the piste is not steep and the trees are well spaced, with the exception of some shrubbery depending on the snow depth. Skiers’ left has little pitches that bench out whilst skiers’ right has trees that have a consistent gentle pitch that naturally spit you back out to the lift, so long as you don’t drop anything steep. It’s low risk terrain that’s ideal for L plate powder hounds. Of course, assess the risk for yourself and keep in mind that any ski patrol resources are close to non-existent should you injure yourself.

There are also steeper pitches that drop down into the Aka River drainage, and a long traverse gets you back in. You might need to bump up from the “Mud Volcano”, the bubbling mud pools which are a tourist attraction and obvious hazard.

Backcountry

The Akita Hachimantai lift is popular with snowshoers heading up to the summit of Mt Hachimantai to check out the snow monsters. You can also ski tour or splitboard up for the views on a fine day, or find some lines that take your fancy. From the ski area, descend to the Aspite Line Road before ascending, where you can check out the fumaroles around Fukenoyu Onsen (closed in winter). A local mountaineering club have been marking the ascent with tape and bamboo, although the poles may not be in place during early winter.

Kagami-numa Pond isn’t too far from the summit, but keep in mind that the striking Hachimantai Dragon Eye doesn’t present itself until spring when plenty of snow has melted.

Akita Hachimantai Snow

The area is renowned for getting plenty of snow and at the start of February the snow base at Akita Hachimantai is usually around the 2.5 metre mark. It’s located not far from Appi, but on the west side of the mountain so it gets more snow.

The Akita Hachimantai ski area has decent elevation and it has a predominantly northwest facing aspect.

Thanks to good snow, it’s often the first Akita ski area to open in mid November and it’s usually open until early May, or later into May if it’s been a good season.

Where is Akita Hachimantai Ski Area?

The Akita Hachimantai Ski Resort sits on the northwest slope of Mt Hachimantai in the Akita Prefecture, close to the border with the Iwate Prefecture. It’s located on the Hachimantai Aspite Line (route 341), a scenic road that’s fully open in summer and crosses the prefectural line.

Akita Hachimantai is 33km (45 minute drive) south of Kazuno City which has two ski areas: Hanawa (33km north of Akita Hachimantai) which is good for ski racing and Suisyozan (32km north of Akita Hachimantai) which is mellow and has one lift. Tayama Ski Area just over in Iwate Prefecture is also close by. Click on the map icon above to see the ski resorts in the area.

Having a car is the best way to get there and an AWD/4WD is required considering the steep road up to the ski area. The telephone number for GPS navigation is 0186-31-2020.

Where To Stay

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Hachimantai Kougen Hotel sits near the base, but it seems to only open for groups, and reservations can only be made via telephone.

The Goshogake Hot Spring Hotel is close by. Check if it’s open as it had been closed for renovations.

You could stay in one of the hotels in Yuze Onsen village which is 28km to the north of Akita Hachimantai Ski Area (about a half hour drive). Yuze Hotel is a great pick, especially considering its amazing open air and semi-open air onsen baths that overlook the river. The hotel has superb western/Japanese combo rooms with plenty of space, and some rooms have a private open air bath. Facilities The ski area is very no frills and you can get basic food at the cafeteria.

Onsen

The area is very geothermally active and in addition to fumaroles and bubbling mud, there are various onsen baths. Note that Fukenoyu Onsen over the back of the ski area, is closed during winter.

Nearby Goshogake Onsen has gender segregated baths and basic facilities (taps and buckets to wash). It has some great fumaroles on the approach but the views from the little outdoor onsen baths are a bit of a disappointment. The indoor areas have a whirlpool bath, steam boxes, steam sauna, and massage waterfalls.

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