Powder season starts before lifts open November 3 2009, 3:00pm via powderlife.com

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Powder season starts before lifts open
TWO days and nights of heavy snow have instantly plunged Niseko in to winter, and pumped locals have already hiked up to score the first waist-deep tracks of the season.
 
The first snow of the season at village level fell on Saturday afternoon, with a centimeter or two settling before melting back on Sunday.
 
Overnight Sunday temperatures plummeted well below zero, the heavens opened and by Monday morning Niseko was covered in its first solid blanket of snow with big dry flakes still coming down hard.