It doesn’t look like much of a mountain, but it was a longer and steeper hike than I thought it would be. When I’m at the bottom, I’m always thinking I can just run up little mountains like this. It’s only when I’m about halfway up that I truly understand the scale and just how small I am. Silly American. Supposedly Hakkoda-san is THE top spot for powder skiing in Aomori Prefecture, but you need a guide to access the back country because they don’t avalanche bomb and I hear it’s very easy to get lost.