Furano, Hokkaido

Furano, located just about in the center of Hokkaido Prefecture is becoming a popular destination for foreign skiers. The purple lavender fields in summer turns into pure white snowfields in winter. Furano ski resorts offer quality powder snow which is perfect for skiing and attracts skiers from around the world. The winter season in Furano presents various options to enjoy the great outdoors. The most exciting of all is an adventure trip on a dog sled. Our reporter Sotaro Nagasawa visits Hidetaka Matsubara in Minami Furano. Matsubara owns 29 sled dogs which are hybrids of Siberian husky and wolf. These wolfdogs can withstand cold temperature and are good runners, which make them optimal companions for dog sledding. Sotaro, with Matsubara as a guide, rides a dog sled and heads for snow-covered primeval forests which even locals rarely enter. On their way, they stop by at Kanayama, a village developed by pioneers who came to seek gold a hundred years ago. They meet Sato's in the village who showed them gold gathered during the gold-rush and hear about the tales from those years. During Sotaro's three-day dog sledding trip, he sleds as he takes care of his six dogs. The most important point of dog sledding is a trusting relationship with dogs. Sotaro struggles as he goes sometimes left behind by dogs. In the snow, they set up a tent by themselves and camp by utilizing nature's resources. On the last day, Sotaro changes his gear from dog sled to skis and aims for a habitat of brown bears. He finds animal foot prints in the snow and brown bear's claw marks on big trees. This edition introduces you to an adventure which can be experienced only in deep snow of Hokkaido during winter.