四季を通して楽しむ湯沢＜春はもうすぐそこに、湯沢雪祭り2019＞/Enjoying Echigo Yuzawa through a year＜Spring is around the corner. Echigo Yuzawa Snow Festival 2019>
2月中旬の大寒波から一転して春の気配
3月最初の土曜日は越後湯沢温泉雪祭り、今年は3月2日、パウダースノーを愛する自分にとってこの雪祭りがスキーシーズンの最後になります。この時期になると新雪も期待できず、気温も徐々に上昇して雪質もシャーベット状になりますので、この雪祭りの土曜日を最後のスキーと決めて東京に帰ってから車のタイヤもノーマルに履き替えることをルーティンにしています。
ところが今年は2月中旬に史上最強の寒波で大雪が降り、その直後に最高のコンディションのスキーを野沢温泉で楽しめたものの、その後は一気に気温が上がって雪が緩み始めました。2月下旬のウィークデーは連日の雨になる始末で、スキーは早々に諦めてしまいました。祭りの当日は昼に松之山温泉でゆっくりと温泉に浸かって、夕方に祭りの会場（温泉街の北端、布場ゲレンデ）に出かけました。
Drastic change from cold wave in February, Spring is just around the corner
The first Saturday of March is the day of Echigo Yuzawa Snow Festival every year. 2. March falls on this day this year. And this Festival is my last ski day as I’m quite keen on snow condition. After the best condition in February, it becomes warm which makes snow as wet as sherbet. I make it a rule to enjoy my last ski on the day of the festival and change winter tires after coming back to Tokyo.
However it has become extremely warm this year after the historical fierce cold wave came in February. Especially it was raining in last week days in February. I had no choice but giving up ski on Friday night. I went to Matsunoyama hot spring in daytime on Saturday and went to Festival site (Nunoba slope, north end of spa street)in the evening.
(English text continues to the latter half of the page)
コンテンツは充実ながら、進行がちょっと・・・
お祭り会場の手前には例年通りに雪のキャンドルが並べられ、屋台も12店舗出ています。翌日が浦佐の裸祭り（日本三大奇祭のひとつ）にあたるため、そちらの方で準備が忙しかったのか屋台の数がちょっと寂しい・・・。
屋台通りの前を雪中神輿が進んでいきます。これも例年通りのイベント。しかし動画の最後の方に気になる人物が・・・、まさか！
そうでした、やっぱりこの方でした！恐らくこの方は毎年褌（ふんどし）一丁で神輿に参加している方。春が近づいたとはいえ、夜になれば外気温はほぼ氷点下近く。気合が違います。
雪のステージでは「ミス駒子」の交代式が行われています。
こちらは新潟のローカルアイドルRyutistのステージ。正直言ってまったくその名前を知りませんでした。半袖のコスチュームで頑張ってます。
今では各地で見られるスキーの松明滑降ですが、1951年に日本で初めて行われたのがこの布場ゲレンデだったそうです。100名あまりのスキーヤーがトーチを掲げて湯沢高原から布場ゲレンデまで降りてきます。しかしここら辺から今回の進行の悪さが目立ち始めました。松明滑降の開始は8時10分の予定だったのが、実際に始まったのは8時半。その間こちらは雪の斜面でひたすら待ちぼうけ。氷点下近くでこの立ちっぱなしはさすがに冷え込みます。
例年ですと最後の松明滑降者が下まで降りてくるのと同時に花火が打ちあがるのですが、今回は8時40分過ぎに松明滑降が終了して、いつまで経っても花火が始まらず観客は真っ暗な雪のスロープに放置されたまま。どうも下のステージのクライマックスと花火をシンクロさせたいらしいのですが、ステージで遅れが生じたのか花火が全く始まらない！やっとスタートした時は9時。目の前で打ちあがる花火はいつも通りの迫力ですが、20分あまりも雪の上で放置された体は心底冷え込みました。この雪祭りには15年以上も通っていますが、ここまでひどい進行は初めて。ぜひ事務局の方々にはこの失敗を今後の糧にしてほしいと思います。
Drastic change from cold wave in February, Spring is just around the corner
The first Saturday of March is the day of Echigo Yuzawa Snow Festival every year. 2. March falls on this day this year. And this Festival is my last ski day as I’m quite keen on snow condition. After the best condition in February, it becomes warm which makes snow as wet as sherbet. I make it a rule to enjoy my last ski on the day of the festival and change winter tires after coming back to Tokyo.
However it has become extremely warm this year after the historical fierce cold wave came in February. Especially it was raining in last week days in February. I had no choice but giving up ski on Friday night. I went to Matsunoyama hot spring in daytime on Saturday and went to Festival site (Nunoba slope, north end of spa street)in the evening.
Festival contents were nice as usual, but conducting was・・・
Just in front of Festival site was the stage of snow candles like the picture below. There were also 12 food wagons, a little bit fewer than expected…. Maybe because a big festival of Urasa nakid festival was scheduled on the next day.
The Mikoshi, little portable shrine, was being carried in snow scenery. This is important routine event of the festival. What? Didn’t you see the incredible guy at the ending scene?
Yes! This is the guy I saw every year. This guy should be the one who joins Mikoshi carry every year just in Fundoshi, Japanese classical under pants. Even though it is warmer than usual, outside temperature at night is almost freezing point. Very, very prepared man!
On the snow stage, “Miss Komako” (annual Miss contest in Yuzawa) contests are going on.
They are Niigata local pop idle “Ryutist”. To be honest, I had never heard of the name.
Although the torch descend is seen in quite many places in Japan nowadays, the first performance in Japan took place in this Nunoba slope in 1951. Around 100 volunteered skiers are coming down from Yuzawa Kogen site to Nunoba slope with torches in their hands. However poor conducting is becoming clear from this event. This event had been scheduled to start at 20:10, but it actually started at 20:30. We had to wait on snow slope in freezing temperature.
In usual case, the first firework is released at the same time as the last torch skier reachs the goal. However nothing happened after the torch descend finished at 20:40. The audience were left behind in snow slope in the darkness. Maybe the MC tried to overwrap the music climax performed downside and fireworks. But the music performance might have been behind schedule. It was after 21:00 when it finally started and it made our bodies almost frozen. I have joined this festival more than 15 years, but this was the worst ever. I hope organizer took precious lesson for the future.