Trip Report

Mt. Maetokachi and Hakuginso Lodge

Posted on Mar 2, 2017
44 4

Posted on Mar 2, 2017

Reading time: [rt_reading_time] min

Last year I was here at Hakuginso Lodge (Fukiage Onsen) with three fellows from France and a fellow from Germany (story here). Today I was back with my brother-in-law from New Zealand to try our luck at Mt. Maetokachi (前十勝岳 – 1,790m). I was keen to capture this active volcano’s towering ferules on my camera. Alas, the wind would turn us back this time also, but we made up for it all with some good onsen time.

Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)

Climb and ski report

We stayed the night before at Hakuginso Lodge (Fukiage Onsen). I’ve written about Hakuginso Lodge before – this place is unique in Hokkaido for its affordable and practical accommodation for anyone passionate about big hills and beautiful snow (see my Hakuginso Lodge info here). Situated at 1,000m altitude, it has a full kitchen, basement drying room with direct access from outside, and a massive onsen. Step from the entrance onto your skis, into wilderness. Rooms are either 12-person bunkrooms (bunks with individual curtains) or large tatami rooms for large groups.

Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)

Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)
Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)
 
Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)
Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)
 

We started up the mountain from the lodge at just before 8am. The route first cuts northwards through dense woods before crossing a stream over a snowbridge. At this stage everything was quiet and still.

Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)

Before long, we were out of the trees and on the exposed lower slopes of Mt. Maetokachi’s north-western face. It became immediately clear that this would be no walk in the park.

Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)

While it was a beautiful clear day overhead, any hopes for towering ferules at the summit were dashed. We could smell the sulfurous gases from where we were, almost 700m below the summit – they were being blown straight down the mountain.

We hiked for just over an hour before deciding to turn around. We’d only gained 400m in altitude, but the wind did not appear to be abating, and if anything felt as though it was getting stronger. For Josh, the downsides of having a large parachute-like contraption strapped to one’s back in a headwind like this were fairly clear.

On the positive side, the conditions made for some beautiful sights. Snow flowed across the surface we were walking on, as if sand. The sun peeked in and out from the summit as we ascended, draping the mountain in a soft, high-contrast glow.

Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)

After a hasty transition, we bounced and scraped our way back down the mountain. Even on the flatter parts we were flying. I’ve never skied with such a strong tailwind!

Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)
Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)
 

It was certainly not the “holy place of powder” that the place was supposed to be. But Mt. Maetokachi still had me charmed.

Seeing it was only just before 10am when we got back to the car, we decided to spend the rest of the morning checking out some of the onsen in the area. First on the list was the free, open-air, mixed-gender Fukiage Onsen (location), about 10 minutes walk from Hakuginso Lodge. I’ve been here on numerous occasions (including when I camped next to it on a trip with Leon Roode in winter), but for some reason this time it was much hotter than I remember it ever being. When it became clear that even an avalanche of snow into the pools would hardly make a dent in the heat, we moved on.

Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)

Our next stop was the run-down but location-perfect Ryounkaku Onsen, at the very end of Route 291 (location). While the price for accommodation is on the high side, the onsen (600yen) and lunches (750yen to 1200yen) are reasonable. Perched at 1,250m, this is the place to go if you need some respite from the weather. The views from the restaurant and onsen are top class. They were a perfect place to end our central Hokkaido adventure, and to begin the 3 hour drive back so Sapporo.

Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)

Mt. Mae-tokachi ski touring (Hokkaido, Japan)

Comments | Queries | Discussion

4 thoughts on “Mt. Maetokachi and Hakuginso Lodge”

      1. Hi Rob, do you know whether Hakuginso Lodge would be likely to be booked out over new years time? I don’t speak Japanese but might try phoning to book I guess.

Leave a Reply to Amanda Harlow Cancel Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

See More Like this

Download may take some time

Hokkaido Wilds Foundation

We’ve got affiliate links on HokkaidoWilds.org to help fund the Hokkaido Wilds foundation.

The Foundation gets a small commission on sales from affiliate links, but we only link to stuff we think is worth checking out for people keen on the outdoors in Hokkaido and Japan.

The Hokkaido Wilds Foundation is a fund where 100% of funds are donated to Hokkaido volunteer groups involved in sustainable, safe, and responsible access to the Hokkaido outdoors.

Learn more here

ADVANCED FILTERS

Filter by location

About Filters

REGION: The general mountain/geographical region the route is in.

BEST MONTH(S): Time of year a route is suited to visiting. Some pop all season, some are more limited.

DIFFICULTY: How strenuous a route is, and how technical it is. Full details here.

FREERIDE/SKITOUR: Very subjective, but is a route more-of-a-walk-than-a-ski or the other way around? Some routes are all about the screaming downhill (freeride), some are more about the hunt for a peak or nice forest (ski-tour). Some are in between. 

MAIN ASPECT: Which cardinal direction the primary consequential slope is facing, that you might encounter on the route. More details here.

ROUTE TAGS: An eclectic picking of other categories that routes might belong to.

SEARCH BY LOCATION: You can find routes near your current location – just click on the crosshairs (). You may need to give permission to HokkaidoWilds.org to know your GPS location (don’t worry, we won’t track you). Or, type in a destination, such as Niseko or Sapporo or Asahikawa etc.

Please let us know how we can make it easier to narrow down your search. Contact Rob at rob@hokkaidowilds.org with your suggestions.

Mt. Maetokachi and Hakuginso Lodge Difficulty Rating

Category

Grade

Points

Strenuousness

Vertical Gain

D

25

Time ascending

D

0

Technicality

Altitude

D

0

Hazards

D

Navigation

D

Totals

25/100

GRADES range from A (very difficult) to D (easy). Hazards include exposure to avalanche and fall risk. More details here. Rating rubric adapted from Hokkaido Yukiyama Guidebook 北海道雪山ガイド.