Ogahara Kogen
A two-chair area in north-west Hiroshima whose managers announced permanent closure in December 2019 on the strength of a forecast for a warmer than usual winter.
- Region
- Hiroshima Prefecture
- Country
- Japan
- Status
- abandoned
- Year opened
- mid-to-late 1980s
- Year closed
- 2018
- Reason for closure
- Insufficient snowfall. The area last operated on 25 February 2018, and on 10 December 2019 the management announced permanent closure, citing a forecast of a warmer than usual winter and the impossibility of keeping the area running.
History
Ogahara Kogen (雄鹿原高原スキー場) lay beside Route 186 in Kitahiroshima Town, in the north-west of Hiroshima Prefecture. Two single chairlifts of 621 m and 319 m served six courses from a 640 m base to an 840 m top - 200 m of vertical, a longest run of 800 m and a steepest pitch of 30 degrees. It last operated on 25 February 2018. What makes its ending notable is how it was announced: on 10 December 2019 the management declared the area permanently closed on the basis of a forecast for a warmer than usual winter, deciding in advance rather than waiting to see whether the snow came. The lifts remain in place and a reopening is considered unlikely. Its opening year is given only as the mid-to-late 1980s and is unconfirmed; course names are not recorded. The coordinates mark the Ogahara district of Kitahiroshima on Route 186.
Lifts
| Name | Type | Manufacturer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unnamed lift | Chairlift - Single | 621 m; still in place after closure | |
| Unnamed lift | Chairlift - Single | 319 m; still in place after closure |
Sources and further reading
More in Japan
Location
34.7321, 132.2372