Видео

Hey mate, it was with Kanto Adventures (David Niehoff) - info@japanadventuregroup.com. Good folks, solid organisation.

Ciao, hai fatto bene a scrivermi. Allora: 1. Per prima cosa mi raccomando di arrivare al luogo di partenza corretto, ovvero NON il Passo Fedaia, ma il parcheggio del Lago di Fedaia. Per non sbagliarsi, metti "Rifugio Cima Undici" su google, e lo trovi. La salita da li all'attacco della Ferrata senza sbagliare niente (come ho invece fatto io nel video) direi ~3 ore. 2. Il giro A/R con Ferrata in salita e Ferrata in discesa partendo e tornando al Lago di Fedaia direi tra le 7-9 ore in base al passo e alla lunghezza della pause/pranzo. Per essere sicuri e avere tutto il tempo disponibile, direi di tenerne 10 libere. 3. Il tratto sul ghiacciaio del Vernel rientra nelle tempistiche che ho menzionato sopra, cmq circa 1 ora. L'ho fatto solo in discesa, e in qualche punto abbiamo usato i ramponi. Si puo' fare anche senza, ma sempre meglio avere il kit in caso uno non si senta a suo agio in alcuni punti. Se fatto lentamente e con cautela direi che non e' pericoloso - pero' e' scivoloso e comunque un po' antipatico (mix di ghiaione, ghiaccio, neve). 4. Altre dritte, direi che sono quelle sul commento della pagina di ferrate365. Assolutamente da non seguire (e quindi da non passare) l'ex Rifugio Pian dei Fiacconi, e invece stare sempre sul sentiero che partendo dal Lago di Fedaia ti porta inzialmente "verso" il ghiacciaio della Marmolada, ma poi molto prima di raggiungerlo svolta a destra e pian piano ti porta al lontano ghiacciaio del Vernel per l'attacco della Ferrata. Quel pezzo li e' lungo e non sempre ben segnato, quindi fate attenzione a non perdervi li. Io per via degli errori in salita (mi sono perso piu' volte e ho poi improvvisato una direttissima con altri scalatori) ci ho messo 10h30m A/R. incluso 1hr+ di pausa e pranzo su a Punta Penia. E' lunga, ma se il tempo regge, davvero tutto bellissimo. Per altre domande scrivimi pure, buona salita!

@@jdtravelninja Grazie mille!

Happy to have shared the adventure with these legends, who knew the Marmolada more than me ;)

Hey mate, through balitrekkingtourcontact@gmail.com. We paid 79usd per person including a driver from our hotel to besakih temple (and back, when we returned) + guide + packed lunch. They picked us up around 11.20pm from our hotel, but bare in mind our hotel was not in downtown Bali - it was already at least 30mins closer.

@@jdtravelninja awesome, thanks for the reply.👌

​@@Richcorhope you get good weather and make it up for sunrise. epic views and feeling!

@@jdtravelninja hopefully, thanks bro

Epic spot and area, amazing hikes. I'm currently in Colfosco doing hikes around here, and will summit Punta Penia on the Marmolada tomorrow.

#lotsofpoetry

hah thanks, hope you enjoyed the video ;)

It mustnt of been cold enough, but when its cold in Japan and your up in the mountains you need a mask

Good point. Honestly, its a bit of a grey area - I heard from multiple sources that there is often police at the bottom of the road that leads to the 5th station, stopping people (even guides, occasionally) from driving on, yet this likely happens only during the key hours when bullet climbers would approach Fuji for a day-hike (eg ~7am-2pm). It seems like cars are free to visit the 5th station in the afternoon, as they're seen as "tourists" who go check out the station/get close to Fuji/take pictures with Fuji signs rather than actually hike it (highly doubt the guys at the end did anything more than a 30min stroll up the mountain before realising it was a mad idea). On May 4th when we hiked it, we must have met a total of 10-15 people throughout the entire day, almost exclusively individual or coupled Japanese fellas hiking up with their skis/snowboards. No foreigners, no other guides etc. I did see someone's post on Facebook about them hiking solo in early May, so I guess its certainly doable.

We traveled in a group of 8, and rented a private van that took us from Narita airport to Sun Valley (Shiga Kogen) for around 110K JPY. Its a bit of a journey, and can be done with trains and buses aswell, but a private transfer is certainly more convenient.

Loving the look of that powder! Looking at heading there this year, pretty much same dates as you went. How was Christmas Day in Shiga?

@@doungy Realistically, mid/end of December will be good, great or incredible based on the amount of snow that Nov and Dec bring to the mountain. 3 days before going I had spoken to a friend in Nozawa Onsen (not in Shiga, but still relatively close) who mentioned snow was little & most lifts were closed. Luckily, it then snowed for 3 days straight and by the time we got to Shiga i would say conditions were between good and great. But nowhere near peak levels of snow that prior Decembers had seen, or levels you usually always have around end of Jan/mid Feb. The later in Dec/Jan you go, the "safer" it is. The "xmas" experience very much depends on the resort/hotel you choose. We stayed at Sun Valley (Villa Alpen), in a nice group, and despite the place not having the "classic" xmas vibes we have in Europe, it was still super warm, cozy and great to spend a white xmas with lots of snow falling right on that night. Look into Ichinose ski resort for accommodation, it could be an even nicer experience (more of a village, with more people/options around you).

@@jdtravelninja yeah I'm hoping the year just gone was a little bit of a outlier and year coming will be cranking. Have been looking at going towards Ichinose so thanks for the information! Coming from Australia, any kind of white will be fine on Xmas!!

To be specfic, you can book Chuo Taxi service, they will pick you up from the airport and take you directly to your hotel door step, approx 150K Yen, but its such a easy way of doing it. You can book Chuo on line

As far as ski options in China go, its pretty nice ;)

Thank you sir, it was an unforgettable experience and solo trip.

Hi Jonba: Overall slope quality and variety (if both connecting mountains are open) = Yabuli. Best overall deal (slopes, difficulty, infrastructure, convenience of transport) = Beidahu or Chongli Best for beginners = Songhuahu or Changbaishan, but watch out for crowds! If you tell me where you're flying in from + your ski level i can give you more tailored recommendations.

Hope you enjoy it, and zero-covid allows you to visit ;)

@@jdtravelninja How the covid policy changed since this comment! What run is that at 0:44 ???

@@laowai2000 Hah yea, how things have changed! Honestly i dont remember the name, but Changbaishan was the first ski resort we visited in China 2 years ago and it was definitely the worse one in terms of slope range and slope difficulty (few slopes, quite easy). This one, if i remember correctly, was a blue slope that not many people seemed to get on, and that was therefore quite fast & empty. Lots of fun!

@@jdtravelninja Nice video! You said changbaishan was the worst one you visited in China. What ski resorts in China would you recommend for advanced skiers?

@@bhoomeerg8045 Top place? Xinjiang, with Koktokay and Altay. If you want to stay in North China/Dongbei (easier to reach), Yabuli, Chongli, Beidahu in that order ;)

Thanks Margot, next update coming soon. In GREEN QRs we trust!

Unbelievable scenes, no one saw this coming in 2021. Its gonna be a long journey, nothing we can do about it. Its the end of an era - post-covid China will be a different country from the one we remember and lived through in the 2010s.

谢谢朋友。别着急，我们会非常看重我们周边的车。。。甘肃和青海太美了吧，不会避免在路上滑滑板！

Awesome, you'll love it! If you need tips, let me know. Sunset on Crescent Lake is awesome, go there early, bring beers, hike up (10mins) and enjoy :)

well said!

Hahah fair point! Well we made it through just in time, but apparently they did indeed stop people getting in Jilin afterwards. Not sure how strict the entrance policies were, but we did have issues making it through ourselves....

In Beidahu, yea! Lots of Rossignol coverage ;)

Won't be your instructor, but can add you on WeChat to share more info ;)

Well it depends what you compare it to. To the Alps and Dolomites in Europe? To Hakuba/Niseko in Japan? If that's the case, yea snow quantity is low and no powder when we went. But there was zero ice, and the snow was great to ski on until ~2pm, after which it was too warm and mushy (it was end of season).

@@jdtravelninja interesting.. but its too much of a trek from where we are.. Hong Kong. We usually just go to Banff in Canada. Lots of great runs and fresh powder.. plus low cost bc we stay with family

Yes honestly all the China ski resorts I went to made a lot of sense during the lockdown years, when we couldn't travel internationally. Moving forward, for expert skiers like my friends and I, we would certainly choose Japan (to stay close) or Europe. Heading to Shiga Kogen this Christmas, will make a video of that for sure :) China ski resorts up north (the ones I visited) at this point are mostly good for locals, foreign China residents living in Beijing or closeby Jilin province, or anyone who's beginner/intermediate. Other than that, the only place in China that is likely international travel-worthy would be Xinjiang. I planned ski trips there two years in a row (2021 and 2022) and they both got canceled last minute for covid. But what I hear/see about Xinjiang is that if you're looking for beautiful and wild mountains + outback its great. Don't expect much from the infrastructure though (f&b, hotels etc).@@hongkonghottie