King Snow
You Have Arrived
Stealth Backcountry, Hokkaido, Japan with The North Face
Words by Jesse Fox
Photos by Todd Easterbrook
Japan isn’t a secret. Travelling to snowboard isn’t unique. From this side of the world, Japan in February resembles Coachella for snowboarders. Everyone flocks there to frolic in the deep, hockey stop in pow for the gram and overuse the hashtag #japow. Somehow, our eight-day Japanese excursion felt different.
Taylor Godber – Taylor is a treat. You’d be pressed to find a nicer and more genuine human in this world. But don’t let that shit fool you. Taylor is a beast. Willing to hike hours for lines and turns that most wouldn’t step to. The timing of this trip took us to Japan during one of the worst snow winters they’ve had in half a century. If this is bad we can’t imagine how it looks when it’s good.
British Columbia-based North Face ambassadors Ben Poechman, Taylor Godber, Johan Rosén and photographer Todd Easterbrook were invited to Stealth Backcountry lodge by owner/ operator/guide, Chandler Kane. We knew little about where we were going and what to expect from the new-ish slackcountry operation based in Hokkaido. We just knew Chandler and his Stealth Backcountry operation offered something unique.
Ben Poechman, Method – We hiked across a dam, up a riverbed, around the bend, and from the bottom of a slope we saw these two trees perfectly teepeed. Ben went to investigate and found a perfect launch opportunity to blast this Method. One of the many photos he took home as souvenirs.
Our story isn’t a laundry list of the mountains we rode, the food we ate, the weather we were handed. And it’s not about the Japanese way of life (even though we could fill pages about the people who approach every exchange and action, both mindful and deliberate. And the culture that bleeds kindness and consideration. The thoughtful welcoming nature that seems to be embedded deep in the core of every Japanese person we met along the way. Or the flavours of the food that nourishes and satisfies. The onsen ritual that acts as a reset for the soul… I digress, like I said, our story isn’t about those things). This is a story about connection and the simple pursuit of floating in powder that connected us to this place and each other. Too deep? Let’s start at the beginning.
Johan Rosen, Hand drag – Johan hums when he eats. The more he hums, the more you know he’s enjoying it. I can’t hum or sing so I just yelled when Johan piloted this perfectly placed hand drag before falling 20 feet into a deep steep pitch. Johan makes snowboarding look good.