Furano-dake
富良野岳43°24′ N 142°38′ Eadvanced1,912 mGuide recommended
Furano-dake's Giant Ridge and the bowls around it give the Tokachi range its sheltered storm-day skiing, and its usual trailheads sit inside the 2026 eruption closure.
Volcanic alert
Tokachidake is at volcanic alert level 3
The Japan Meteorological Agency raised Tokachidake to level 3 on 12 September 2026, which restricts entry around the crater. Fukiage Onsen Hakugin-so and the Fukiage Roten-no-yu outdoor bath are closed, and Ryounkaku has asked guests who couldn't evacuate quickly to stay away for now. Check the JMA bulletin before you plan any tour on the Tokachi range.
Checked 2026-10 · jma.go.jp
Photo Rob Thomson (hokkaidowilds.org) · Publisher's own site · CC BY-SA 4.0 and others, credited in the gallery
Read the terrain
Old-growth conifers on the Giant Ridge shelter powder up to treeline at about 1,400 m, and the Nishi-shamen drops off skier's left of the ridge into the Nijurinpan-sawa gully. Kaun Bowl sits above treeline under the ridge that joins Furano-dake to Sanpo-zan.
Watch for these hazards
- Kamifurano town has banned climbing from the Fukiage and Tokachidake Onsen trailheads since the Level 3 alert of 12 September 2026
- The valley skier's right of the Giant Ridge is the main avalanche path, and the next ridge north has seen several accidents and deaths
- Kaun Bowl starts with a steep, no-fall bootpack over snowplow debris down to the creek
- Creek crossings rely on snow bridges that may be thin early and late in the season
- Hard, rimed snow above treeline; the summit needs an ice axe and crampons
- Temperatures below -20°C, with windchill past -30°C in Kaun Bowl
- Tight new-growth trees on the exit back to the road
Pick a route that suits the dayルート
Giant Ridge
400 m ascent · advanced
The northwest ridge takes about 2 hours from the Hakuginso turn-off to around 1,500 m and an hour back down the same way. The conifers hold powder below treeline, and the valley on skier's right is avalanche terrain to skip unless the snow is very stable.
Nishi-shamen西斜面
500 m ascent · advanced
The west slope drops off the Giant Ridge into the Nijurinpan-sawa gully through up to 500 m of old-growth trees. The exit back to the trailhead runs through tight new growth.
Kaun Bowl華雲ボウル
490 m ascent · advanced
This cirque north of the Furano-dake–Sanpo-zan ridge takes about 2.5 hours to reach from Tokachidake Onsen. It's all above treeline and the better slopes are avalanche terrain. Allow about six hours if you want several laps.
Maefurano-dake前富良野岳
1,190 m ascent · advanced
This 1,625 m outlier southwest of Furano-dake is approached up a snowed-in road from Higashi-tomioka in Furano city. Its south-facing ridges and bowl make a 21 km day, and the last 250 m to the summit can be icy.
See the published lines and the closures立体地図
4 trip reports
What riders report from the hill山行記録
The Giant Ridge, Nishi-shamen and Kaun Bowl reports predate the Level 3 alert of 12 September 2026, which closed the Fukiage and Tokachidake Onsen trailheads. Maefurano-dake is approached from the Furano city side.
2018-02 · Hokkaido Wilds trip report
In a report published in February 2018, a group of nine went up into a forecast of strong midday wind and found shelter once they reached the big conifers. You can drop to the riverbed straight off the T-intersection, or walk a little downhill to a gentler bank that costs a second stream crossing.
Read the source2024-01-20 · Hokkaido Wilds trip report
The trailhead lot was busy before 7 am, though guide lobbying has won a deeper plowed area than in 2019. The author found the approach and exit an icy slalom through tight trees, and a good skin track back to the ridge lets fit parties lap Nishi-shamen for five or six hours.
Read the source2024-03-09 · Hokkaido Wilds trip report
South and west aspects were baked into grabby crust, so the party switched to the north-facing slopes of Kaun Bowl and skied dry powder from 1,600 m down to 1,300 m. Above 1,600 m it turned to dust on crust, and the party used a car shuttle for the Sanpozan-sawa exit to the Furano-dake trailhead.
Read the source2020-03-02 · Hokkaido Wilds trip report
Furano City told the author the Ningle forest hut had a stove and no firewood, so four people sledded close to 50 kg of wood up the road and found the hut already stacked with it. The hut key comes from the city office, and in April you can drive to Akigumo bridge and save about two hours of flat skinning there and back.
Read the source
Go with a guideガイド
Furano-dake is the 1,912 m peak at the southern end of the Tokachidake horseshoe, about 20 km east of Furano town. The name trips people up because the ski resort is called Furano too. The resort sits on lower Furano Nishi-dake across the Furano basin, and its access points have their own entry under furano-nishidake.
The classic line here is the Giant Ridge. You drop off a snowbank at the Hakuginso turn-off, cross the Nukkakushi-furano river and climb through old conifers to about 1,500 m, where the snow usually deteriorates. Below treeline the forest keeps the wind off, and the powder stays soft on days when the open slopes are blown to crust. On a stable day the Nishi-shamen off the ridge's west flank gives you up to 500 m of vertical in big trees.
Kaun Bowl starts at the Ryounkaku car park with a steep bootpack down to the creek, then follows a narrow ridge past two waterfalls to a 1,700 m plateau. Above about 1,600 m the snow is usually rime, and the protected powder sits lower in the bowl. Maefurano-dake comes at the range from the Furano city side, and the 21 km day from Higashi-tomioka has no bus and very little phone signal.
In October 2026 the Fukiage and Tokachidake Onsen trailheads are closed to climbing under Kamifurano's Level 3 restrictions, and Hakuginso is shut. Check the town's notices and the JMA bulletin before planning a trip, and file a police plan through Compass whenever the range reopens.
Quick answers about Furano-dakeよくある質問
How long is a tour on Furano-dake?
A typical tour on Furano-dake climbs 400–500 m typical tours; 1,190 m for Maefurano-dake and takes 4–4.5 hours; 8.5 hours for Maefurano-dake.
When can you ski tour Furano-dake?
The touring season on Furano-dake runs december to April; best January to March.
Do you need a guide for Furano-dake?
We recommend a certified guide for Furano-dake unless your group can read the snowpack and run its own rescue.
Where do you check avalanche danger for Furano-dake?
Read the day's bulletin from Japan Avalanche Network (https://nadare.jp/) before every tour on Furano-dake.
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