Welcome to Snow Country Stories Japan*, a podcast all about life in Japan’s legendary ‘yukiguni’. In Episode 01 of the podcast I sat down for a chat with Mark Stahnke of Madarao Mountain Lodge. Originally from Sydney, Australia, Mark has been living in Japan for years and operating his ski lodge in Madarao Mountain Resort since 2017. He’s a big part of the community in Madarao and is a wealth of knowledge about Madarao, life in the snow country and Japan in general.
An Orographic Chat with Mark of Madarao Mountain Lodge
Mark was good enough to give me his time in the final days of the season before he shuts down the lodge and takes a well-earned break. The interview starts with Mark and I talking about the season that’s been and the return of inbound tourism before getting into the details of Madarao Mountain Resort and just why Mark rates it so highly.
Along the way he drops the ‘orographic effect’ into the conversation – I play along like I know what he’s talking about before looking up the meaning later in the day – and we talk tree zones, backcountry and the need to follow the rules before moving onto Mark’s story and just how a Sydney native came to be living in the snow country.
Another big thanks to Mark for giving up his time. Having stayed at the lodge on a number of occasions, I recommend it as a place to stay when in Madarao. Mark is a fantastic host. I hope the episode piques your interest in visiting Madarao and upcoming episodes of the podcast!
You can find more information at:
Madarao Mountain Lodge: https://www.madaraoskilodge.com/
Madarao Mountain Resort: https://www.madaraomountainresort.com/
Kaesa Farm Stay: https://www.madaraomountainresort.com/japan-farmstay.html
*please note, at the time of upload of this episode, the name of the podcast was 'Snow Country For Old Men'. It has since changed to 'Snow Country Stories Japan'. For more information about that change, listen to the special announcement uploaded on April 24th 2023.