Zao Mountains, Japan

Our trip was full of drama - as always!!

蔵王山 was one of the highlights of this trip to Japan. It's a ski resort, so you'd think we could just take a gondola and go up there, right? Wrong!!

Day1 was very windy and snowy. Wanting to stick with our travel schedules, we ignored the weather warning and charged ahead. Wow, we literally waited in line for 2.5 hours - in the wind and snow. When we finally got up there, it was in a total whiteout condition. The winds were so strong on top of the mountain that we could barely open our eyes! The goal was the photograph those odd-shaped, ice-covered trees. The challenge was - we couldn't see ANYTHING; couldn't even bring out our cameras.

Day2 was sunny. We decided to try again. Wow, this time, it took us 4.5 hours to finally get up there - insane!! Honestly, I have never stood in such long lines in my life! Japan, why???

Hard to take meaningful photos under such strong lights (The place opened at 8:30am. We didn't get up there until 1pm). But I still think the photos are priceless! They help us see the violent winters up at the Zao Mountains!!

Yamagata, Japan

February 15, 2025

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The Zaō Mountains (蔵王山, Zaō Renpō), commonly called Mount Zaō, are a complex cluster of stratovolcanoes on the border between Yamagata and Miyagi in Japan. 

One striking feature of Zaō's famous ski resorts are the "frost-covered trees" (树冰) that appear in mid-winter. Strong wind over the nearby lake fling water droplets which freeze against the trees and their branches, until near-horizontal icicles begin to form. Falling snow settles on the ice formations, and the end result is a grotesque figure of a tree. The effect of a full forest of such trees gives visitors a ghostly impression. Zaō is one of the 100 Famous Japanese Mountains.