The Powder Project provides backcountry guiding off the beaten track in Hokkaido, Japan and Canterbury, New Zealand.
We’re all about real backcountry skiing and splitboarding. Good friends, good snow, good lines, and first tracks.
Whether you’re looking for deep powder, onsens and ramen in Hokkaido, or steep lines, glaciers, and down-to-earth ski culture in New Zealand, we can help you out. We know that the best ski and snowboard days happen with small groups of friends, away from the crowds, in places you won’t always find in the tourist brochures. Because the best travel experiences don’t come from a brochure. They come from those little authentic snapshots into other worlds. That could mean the best katsu curry you’ve ever had in a little family restaurant in Japan, or watching the sky light up as the sun sets from the deck of a mountain hut perched above a glacier in NZ. Either way, we’re all about sharing days that you’ll remember for the rest of your life.
We only take group bookings, so you can ensure that you're riding with your friends and moving at the same speed. Our trips are flexible to get the best combination of snow, weather and terrain for your group. Whether you’re a seasoned veteran or still trying to figure out how your gear works we’ll take you into amazing mountains, find the best snow, show you great terrain, and get you home safely.
Immerse yourself in Hokkaido, Japan
Deep, dry consistent pow. Hot springs. Delicious food. Contrasting cultures. If Japan sounds like the perfect destination for a ski or snowboarding trip, that’s because it is. We’ve been skiing here for years, and we make a point of getting away from the tourist towns and crowds. Hokkaido has some of the most reliable winters on the planet. Cold dry air blowing off Siberia picks up moisture over the Sea of Japan and smashes into this wild and rugged island. We are based near Hokkaido’s highest mountains, the Daisetsuzan range. From here, we are well placed to make the most of this unique landscape and its incredible weather.
We want you to get the most out of your time in Hokkaido, so as well as offering backcountry guiding our website has a pile of great information to help you cut through the marketing hype and plan your ideal trip.
Ride with Us
Plan Your Trip
We offer single day backcountry guiding and multi-day guided trips focused on the best touring areas in central Hokkaido. This area has unbelievable turns for those willing to hike. We’ve spent years hiking in central Hokkaido in some of the best terrain and snow we’ve seen anywhere in the world. If you don’t compromise on quality, come join us.
From coffee enemas to salt lamps, the internet is full of bad advice. Fortunately we’re here to help you sort the facts from the marketing hype and forum wars. Like an Instagram influencer but with less hashtags and more Gore-tex. Check out our information on where to ski, where to stay, and what you need to know to make the most of your time in Hokkaido.
Our trips:
Get up to get down in Canterbury, NZ
If your ideal winter trip involves a generous serve of adventure, New Zealand should be high on your list. Canterbury showcases the best of Kiwi skiing and boarding, with epic terrain, stunning scenery, and a unique ski culture. You won’t find mega resorts here, but you will find everything else. Tiny ski areas run by ingenious community clubs, heliskiing in untouched alpine wilderness, hut touring in the high mountains, and bowl after bowl of untracked lines.
NZ is notoriously fickle and getting the best out of your trip requires local knowledge, a flexible approach, and maybe a little P-tex. But we’ve got all that in spades.
Ride with Us
Plan Your Trip
We offer multi-day trips between the Craigieburn Range, Arthur’s Pass, Methven and Mt Cook regions. Our partnership with Anna Keeling Guiding and Alpine Guides gives us some extra logistical muscle, which means hut trips, heli access, and resort based backcountry are all on the menu. We keep our options open and our trips flexible to make the most of the conditions and weather.
Canterbury isn’t set up for destination ski tourism. It’s set up to offer cheap skiing to local Kiwis, in a nation with unique and thought-provoking attitudes to risk, effort and personal safety. The normal assumptions about ski “resorts” simply don’t apply here. We’ve set out the basic information you need to plan a trip. You should definitely take a look.
Our trips:
Get the lowdown
We're passionate about sharing great riding and giving people the chance to visit some incredible places. Keep up with what we're doing and get some honest, hype-free insight into the places we travel on our blog, the Powder Project Diaries, or subscribe to our newsletter.
Ready to launch?
Want to make plans for your next epic winter holiday? Head to our trips page, email us at contact@powder-project.com or hit the button below to get started.
Don’t just take our word for it
We understand that getting your trip sorted is a serious business. You’ve got limited time to ride this winter, it’s not cheap, and you want to make the most of your chance.
So why should you trust some random guys on the internet? Take a look at what some of our previous customers have said and done. From grizzled backcountry addicts to first time tourers, we take people into the mountains, show them a great time, and get home in time for ramen.
“Managed to book a couple days last minute with the Powder Project. John found us some amazing snow and our best turns in Hokkaido. Unlike many of the companies in Hokkaido, John is an actual ski guide and it shows in his decision making and knowledge. He steered us around some nasty wind slab and found good skiing down lower, then found us amazing, off the beaten track skiing the following day. Always felt 100% comfortable in the backcountry with John, and he’s very easy to get along with. Looking forward to planning another trip already!”
— Peter Rubenstein, Japan 2020
“In my experience everyone is bound to ski rad stuff for their level with The Powder Project. John’s unparalled experience of Central Hokkaido's actual backcountry in recent years will put a smile on your face unless you have your mouth full of snow during a turn. And that’s a very good time, too. His professionalism in guiding and genuine enthusiasm is only met by his dry sense of humour. It’s been an empowering experience to ski with The Powder Project and I don’t see a global catastrophe big enough to keep me from doing it again next season.”
— Mikko Vanska, Japan 2018
“We arrived in Japan just as a dry spell started. We thought we would be scrounging for leftovers, but John took us to backcountry areas that were still getting sneaky pow. We ended up skiing untracked blower snow for two days, and were the only car in the parking lot both times. We're experienced backcountry skiers, but some local knowledge really helped us make the most of our trip.”
— Matt Lum (Vancouver, Canada), Japan 2018
“This was my first foray into backcountry touring, and now I'm not sure I'll ever return to resortland. I had total faith in my guide and easily tapped into the confidence I needed to venture into the most thrilling terrain I've ever skied. The Powder Project will cure any misconception that Hokkaido mountains are 'mellow'—these guys can guide anything and won't quit until they find the perfect untouched powder. Heaps of the stuff. Simply delicious.”
— Zack Susel (New York, USA), Japan 2018
“This is insane!”
— Richard Rosenfeld (Aspen, USA), many times, Japan 2016
“Don’t encourage him.”
— John's Mum, upon learning he'd passed his guides' exam
“I reckon we each did nearly 20,000m of vert in untracked powder in one week. Sure we got good weather, but it was knowledge that got us there - thanks boys.”
— Mike Walker (Central Coast, Australia), New Zealand 2015
“More than alright, epic session today, tks”
— Benoit Peignier (Phuket, Thailand), Japan 2016
“I’ve skied in the Canterbury club fields a lot, and thought I knew them pretty well. But your knowledge of the mountains and snow and weather of that region meant we skied fantastic snow and challenging terrain all week. Every day delivered, and I know for sure that it wasn’t amazing everywhere that week.”
— Tom Holden (Newcastle, Australia), New Zealand 2015