Globetrotting Peanuts

Why have I heard of Hakuba before?

If you’ve ever looked at a winter trip to Japan, chances are you’ve come across Hakuba several time. It’s an extremely popular ski destination from December-March in Nagano, Japan. Its location allows quick access from Tokyo by Shinkansen (bullet train) and bus to the village. In winter, the slopes and ski gear rental shops are mostly run by Australians who work the winter season. So, if you’re a fellow Aussie, skiing in Hakuba is easy to navigate and feels a little like home.

The first time I visited Hakuba was in 2014 for a family trip to Japan and ski trip. To say it’s a popular destination is an understatement. Accommodation and rental gear books up extremely quickly and it’s a good idea to get on the slopes early to get in some quieter runs before everyone wakes up and you have to dodge people for the rest of the day. But, there’s a reason this place is so popular. There are various mountains and ski resorts to choose from which means countless runs with varying difficulty to choose from. With the added convenience of mostly English-speaking staff, Hakuba is an excellent destination for foreigners looking to enjoy some winter sport. Of course, Hakuba also has several companies that offer ski and snowboard lessons, as well as ski-mobile and snow-shoeing tours. The ultimate winter adventure village.

Experiencing how busy Hakuba was in winter, its hard to believe it could be that busy any other time. But, talking to some locals during the 2014 trip, they assured us that it’s actually even busier in the summer months for hiking. No, way, not possible…or so I thought!

Hakuba in summer

A long weekend gave us the perfect opportunity to head back to Hakuba and check out what the summer season has to offer. The accommodation options were sparser in summer, but still gave us plenty of options to choose from. We ended up choosing Panketo lodge as they had great COVID-19 measures and breakfast available. Bonus, the owner has a giant Golden Retriever, ‘Marlon’, and we instantly fell in love with him so he got lots of pats that weekend. Another bonus were the instruments. There was a guitar, frequently played beautifully by the owner, and a grand piano, which we both may have played a little!

After driving through rain coming off a typhoon all morning, we finally arrived at the lodge in the late afternoon. So that evening we checked out the local information center, which also happened to be a Starbucks, which also happened to have the most incredible view of the Hakuba Alps! After getting a sneaky hot chocolate (because there was a bit of a chill in the air!), we headed to find dinner. I would say that this is the main difference between Hakuba in summer and winter. Many of the restaurants were closed for the summer season, probably some due to Corona but some are just closed because not as many are looking for food in the summer seasons. Driving down the main street there was only one restaurant that was hopping and it was Mexican which was just fine with us as we love Mexican food! A quick conbini ice cream trip later and we were back at the lodge playing some piano and patting Marlon before getting a nice early night in bed.

A Hakuba hiking experience

The next morning, we started with an amazing brekky provided by the lodge at 7:30am, then headed out to our first stop of the day: hiking to Happo-ike (Happo pond). We were aware this hike was probably fairly popular but we had no idea how popular. The town of Hakuba itself seemed pretty dead but when we arrived at the bottom of Happo-one, it was an entirely different story. To start the hike to Happo-ike, one must take a gondola and 2 chair-lifts up past the famous and very popular Happo-One slopes. The line to get on the gondola was incredibly long and snaked round several times. Parking was also challenging and cost $10, mostly because we were there at 9am. So, if you’re going to do the Happo-ike hike, we suggest getting there when the lifts open at 7am! It took us about 45mins to get onto a gondola which was okay, as standing in a ski village looking up at the mountains is not a bad place to wait. A gondola trip and 2 chair lifts later, we arrived at the starting point. The view of course from the chair lifts was INCREDIBLE and well worth the money to get on.

Fortunately, the wait for the gondola separated people enough that the start of the hike was relatively quiet. It starts with a rock and dirt path that snakes up the mountain side, followed by a boardwalk path that takes you through a pass to the ridgeline. Here it started to get a little busier as people stopped to have snacks, check out the view, or just have a rest. By the time we hit the ridgeline, it was hiker to hiker, masks on for everyone (well…most people). Again, we would suggest going a lot earlier! This part of the hike gets relatively steep and is mainly rock all the way up to the pond. But don’t fear, at every corner the path widens which allows plenty of room to take a quick rest and check out the amazing view which gets better and better as you climb! Eventually, you will reach Happo-ike. The pond itself is…fine? It’s a pond, not particularly large but, it’s not just the pond that makes this spot amazing. It’s the pond surrounded by Alps that makes this place amazing. The pond reflects its surroundings and makes for a photographer’s dream spot. Of course, the area around the pond was extremely busy as a lot of people chose this spot to stop and have lunch. We opted to sit down by the pond for a few minutes before climbing to the top side to get a better view, and some photos. As you can see, the hike was SO worth it. Sometimes the brain just can’t comprehend what it’s looking at, and this was one of those times. It was like staring at a postcard. The mountain-top pond reflecting the giant white-topped alps in the background makes you feel pretty small. The site was beyond incredible to see. It’s hard to explain and the photos don’t even do it justice.

After taking our time enjoying the view and trying to capture the magnificence of the Alps, it was time to head back down to the gondola station. Going down was pretty slow going as it was hiker to hiker, being careful not to rush the oldies or the kiddies. But once we made it down to the gondola station, everyone dispersed fairly quickly. Before heading onto our next adventure, food was an absolute necessity as one of us (not naming names) tends to get pretty hangry if we go too long without food. Fortunately, we found the BEST spot on the mountain. With a huge balcony to enjoy the view, Hakuba Mountain Beach is the perfect place to relax and unwind after a hike. Bonus, the burgers here are INSANE. It also houses a sauna and jacuzzi on the rooftop (which we did not make use of), lounge chairs, and hammocks. So, there’s really something for everyone. After refueling and relaxing with a view, we finally headed back down to the car to move onto our next destination.

A quaint forest-hidden pond hike

Next was to another hike we’d found when looking at hiking around Hakuba. Kama-Ike was a quaint little 2km stroll around a pond (though a very large pond). Compared to the morning on the alps with every other hiking-lover in Japan, it was extremely quiet and we only passed 2 different groups around the pond. The peace and quiet was a lovely change and a perfect way to end the day. We watched as the sun got lower in the sky and the clouds and surrounding mountains reflected off the still water. By the time we got back to the car, its safe to say that we were both exhausted!

We headed back to the lodge to clean ourselves up and get ready to go again for dinner. Tonight’s dinner was a fancy, but quiet, Italian restaurant on the main street. We tried getting into what seemed to be the local pub but it was so packed that we couldn’t even get in! But fancy Italian was the way to go as it perfectly satisfied our love for cheese and our appetite. Of course we again had to do the convenience store ice cream run on our way back to the lodge then it was so more pats for Marlon and off to get some solid sleep.

Kayaking on Lake Aoki

We were SO excited when we woke up on our last day in Hakuba. It was kayaking day!! We’d been kayaking before in Japan, in Nikko with a large group of people, with all instructions in Japanese. This was a very different experience. Lake Aoki lies at the foot of the Hakuba alps so, as you can imagine, the surrounding views were next-level. It was going to be the perfect place to go for a kayak and a swim! Due to the high population of foreigners in Hakuba, most of the instructors for activities at Lake Aoki can speak English or even come from English-speaking countries. To our surprise, we were the only ones on our tour! So it felt like we had a little private kayaking tour of the Lake. Our guide was incredible, and he worked out pretty quickly that we could kayak proficiently so basically just guided us around the lake, took us under and through trees and showed us the best swimming spots. He was Japanese but could speak English fluently and had lived in so many places around the world! So, he was an absolute delight to chat to for a few hours. We did get to take a swim (in the ice-cold water) in the crystal clear water so that was incredibly refreshing. Honestly the best part were the surrounding views. Every time you looked up you were in awe of the surrounding mountains which reflected of the still lake. Absolutely incredible! If you’ve already been to Hakuba to ski or snowboard in winter, I can highly recommend going back in summer to experience the different activities they have on offer!

After drying off and getting changed after the kayaking, it was time to head back to Tokyo. We absolutely loved our summertime in Hakuba and highly recommend visiting if you’re in Japan during the warmer months!