All white: Skiers rejoice in epic falls

WINTER has made a comeback in North America with bumper falls at ski resorts while Japan is celebrating one of its best seasons ever.

Hakuba Japan

WINTER has made a comeback in North America with bumper falls at ski resorts while Japan is celebrating one of its best seasons ever.

While it has been a disappointing season at many resorts in the US, skiers and snowboarders are rejoicing at the latest present from Mother Nature.

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Nearly 20m of snow has fallen at Niseko on Japan's North Island, Hokkaido, so far this season.

"There's no doubt it will be up there with the biggest winters ever,'' Skijapan.com CEO Peter Murphy said.

"It is an awesome amount of snow and I'm very positive we will see a return to the level of business we were experiencing before the problems on Japan's main island of Honshu."

Around 122cm of snow fell at Fernie ski resort in Canada in two days this week.

"We have had a great, I mean epic winter at Fernie Alpine Resort, British Columbia,'' Resorts of the Canadian Rockies vice-president Matt Mosteller said.

"The snow cycles and epic storms have been unbelievable.''

A two-day storm at Colorado in the USA also saw some resorts receive more than 70cm of snow in two days.
Purgatory at Durango Mountain Resort was the biggest winner with 71cm, followed by Wolf Creek Ski Area with more than 68cm and Silverton with nearly 61cm.

Breckenridge has also received more than 61cm of snow in the past week while Aspen had received 38cm and Vail had more than 25cm.

Snow was also dumping on resorts at Lake Tahoe in California, including Heavenly and Northstar.

Vail Resorts spokeswoman May Lilley said it was looking like a monster March ahead.

"We're enjoying waist deep powder out here and some of the best skiing conditions of the season,'' she said.

"While it was a slower start to the season than in previous years, Winter has made a serious comeback.